Wood Structure
June 1, 2009 by blogtopia
Filed under Definitions
Wood is a heterogeneous, hygroscopic, cellular and anisotropic material. It is composed of cells, and the cell walls are composed of microfibrils of cellulose (40% – 50%) and hemicellulose (15% – 25%) impregnated with lignin (15% – 30%).
In coniferous or softwood species the wood cells are mostly of one kind, tracheids, and as a result the material is much more uniform in structure than that of most hardwoods. There are no vessels ("pores") in coniferous wood such as one sees so prominently in oak and ash, for example.