Frontpage » Tag » wood

News tagged with wood

Pine transformed by modern alchemists

Swiss researchers have given pinewood the hardness and smooth touch of precious wood. L’EPFL+ECAL Lab presents the first objects made of this new material in Helsinki today.

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Jan 27, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Wood-burning stoves - harmful or safe?

Wood-burning stoves are a popular source of heating in many countries. However in recent years there has been much debate about the potential negative health effects associated with wood smoke. A Norwegian researcher has ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 17, 2012 | popularity 2.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Kim's 11-ace debut round recalled on Twitter

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il's death was noted on Twitter as an epic loss to golf, with hundreds recalling the Stalinist state media's reports of Kim's 11 holes-in-one in a single round in 1994.

Technology / Internet

created Dec 19, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Chemicals and biofuel from wood biomass

(PhysOrg.com) -- A method developed at Aalto University in Finland makes it possible to use microbes to produce butanol suitable for biofuel and other industrial chemicals from wood biomass. Butanol is particularly ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Dec 19, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

On the road to creating an affordable master instrument

Violins made of wood treated with fungus need not hide their lights when compared to a Stradivarius, as a blind test has already demonstrated. However, these tonal masterpieces are only available as individually-made ...

Chemistry / Other

created Dec 09, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Tiger Woods' superstar status hobbled the competition

Tiger Woods's phenomenal talent won him a ton of golf tournaments. But an article published in the latest issue of the Journal of Political Economy shows he has something else going for him: his superstar status hobbles the co ...

Other Sciences / Economics & Business

created Dec 06, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (3) | comments 0

New bamboo charcoal tech to jumpstart African bioenergy sector, slow deforestation and climate change

Bamboo, a plant not often associated with Africa, may be the key to combating soil degradation and massive deforestation on the continent as an alternative source of energy.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 02, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Mast from classic racing yacht holds one of the keys to sustainable biofuels

(PhysOrg.com) -- The mast from a classic racing yacht and samples from a Forestry Commission breeding trial have played a key role in the search for sustainable biofuels.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Nov 25, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (4) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Generating ethanol from lignocellulose possible, but large cost reductions still needed

The production of ethanol from lignocellulose-rich materials such as wood residues, waste paper, used cardboard and straw cannot yet be achieved at the same efficiency and cost as from corn starch. A cost comparison has concluded ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 08, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

First renewable energy exchange opens in Amsterdam

Dutch-Belgian energy market provider APX-Endex launched a "biomass exchange" Thursday specialising in trading wood pellets as a source of renewable energy, a venture it said was a world first.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Nov 03, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 2

First-of-a-kind tension wood study broadens biofuels research

Taking a cue from Mother Nature, researchers at the Department of Energy's BioEnergy Science Center have undertaken a first-of-its-kind study of a naturally occurring phenomenon in trees to spur the development ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Oct 25, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Barbie packaging to get earth-friendly makeover

US toy giant Mattel, maker of the world-famous Barbie doll, has decided to use more environmentally friendly materials in its packaging after months of criticism from Greenpeace.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Oct 06, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

The green look for EV charging stations

The network of electric-vehicle (EV) charging stations in Germany is still relatively sparse, but their number is growing rapidly. The majority of roadside charging points take the form of steel-clad pillars. ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Oct 05, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Supercritical water could lead to biomass-to-fuel conversion on a large scale

(PhysOrg.com) -- Converting agricultural waste into vehicle fuel has so far been an enticing yet elusive endeavor, at least on the industrial scale. But recently the Georgia-based company Renmatix has taken ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Oct 03, 2011 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (10) | comments 8 | with audio podcast weblog

Researchers produce cheap sugars for sustainable biofuel production

Iowa State University's Robert C. Brown keeps a small vial of brown, sweet-smelling liquid on his office table.

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Sep 29, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 7 | with audio podcast

Wood

Wood is an organic material; in the strict sense it is produced as secondary xylem in the stems of trees (and other woody plants). In a living tree it conducts water and nutrients to the leaves and other growing tissues, and has a support function, enabling woody plants to reach large sizes or to stand up for themselves. However, wood may also refer to other plant materials with comparable properties, and to material engineered from wood, or wood chips or fiber.

People have used wood for millennia for many purposes, primarily as a fuel or as a construction material for making houses, tools, weapons, furniture, packaging, artworks, and paper. Wood can be dated by carbon dating and in some species by dendrochronology to make inferences about when a wooden object was created. The year-to-year variation in tree-ring widths and isotopic abundances gives clues to the prevailing climate at that time.

For more information about Wood, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.