Wood

Wood samples
 Pine 
 Spruce 
 Larch 
 Aspen 
 Birch 
 Alder 
 Beech 
 Oak 
 Elm 
 Cherry 
 Pear 
 Maple 
 Linden 
 Ash 

Wood is a structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic material – a natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin that resists compression. Wood is sometimes defined as only the secondary xylem in the stems of trees,[1] or more broadly to include the same type of tissue elsewhere, such as in the roots of trees or shrubs. In a living tree it performs a support function, enabling woody plants to grow large or to stand up by themselves. It also conveys water and nutrients between the leaves, other growing tissues, and the roots. Wood may also refer to other plant materials with comparable properties, and to material engineered from wood, woodchips, or fiber.

Wood has been used for thousands of years for fuel, as a construction material, for making tools and weapons, furniture and paper. More recently it emerged as a feedstock for the production of purified cellulose and its derivatives, such as cellophane and cellulose acetate.

As of 2020, the growing stock of forests worldwide was about 557 billion cubic meters.[2] As an abundant, carbon-neutral[3] renewable resource, woody materials have been of intense interest as a source of renewable energy. In 2008, approximately 3.97 billion cubic meters of wood were harvested.[2] Dominant uses were for furniture and building construction.[4]

  1. ^ Hickey, M.; King, C. (2001). The Cambridge Illustrated Glossary of Botanical Terms. Cambridge University Press.
  2. ^ a b FAO. 2020. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020: Main report Archived November 5, 2022, at the Wayback Machine. Rome.
  3. ^ "The EPA Declared That Burning Wood is Carbon Neutral. It's Actually a Lot More Complicated". Archived from the original on June 30, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  4. ^ Horst H. Nimz, Uwe Schmitt, Eckart Schwab, Otto Wittmann, Franz Wolf "Wood" in Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry 2005, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. doi:10.1002/14356007.a28_305