Panel and plate properties of Cross-laminated timber (CLT) with tropical fast-growing timber species in compliance with Eurocode 5

Abstract

Cross-laminated timber (CLT) is widely regarded as an effective building material that increases productivity during construction and effectively stores carbon dioxide. Southeast Asia is home to some of the fastest-growing timber species worldwide. The feasibility of using fast-growing, tropical timber species for CLT is explored in this study. The timber species red jabon (A. macrophyllus – 9 years old), sengon (F. moluccana – 5 years old) and acacia hybrid (A. mangium × A. auriculiformis – 5 years old) were sourced from Indonesia, and the timber species Norway spruce (P. abies) was sourced from Latvia. 1C-PUR adhesive was used for the bonding and the CLT panels were produced and tested according to EN 16351:2015. It was found that F. moluccana panels exhibit a significantly lower bending stiffness than P. abies panels. However, it is found that if F. moluccana is used as the inner layer in combination with A. mangium × as the outer layer, the panels exceed the values of P. abies. Moreover, A. macrophyllus shows great potential to achieve CL24 strength class. If A. macrophyllus is combined with A. mangium × in the outer layers, higher strength classes than CL24 can be achieved. These results suggest that the fast-growing timber species used in this study have the potential to be successfully used for CLT and to ultimately supplement imported European P. abies CLT in Southeast Asia's construction.