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Density of wood
The mass of over 30 different species of wood are listed below. While the data is useful for the design and selection of wood, individual samples will differ. Moisture content will have a marked influence. 1000kg of pure water = 1 cubic metre Pure water was chosen as the 'base line' for specific gravity and given the value of 1. The specific gravity of all other materials are compared to water as a fraction heavier or lighter density. For example, afromosia has a specific gravity (sg) of 0.705 while ebony can have a sg of 1.12 (1120 kg/cu.m) (see table below) As specific gravity is just a comparison, it can be applied across any units. The density of pure water is also 62.4 lbs/cu.ft (pounds per cubic foot) and if we know that a sample of apple has a sg of 0.73 then we can calculate that its density is 0.73 x 62.4 = 45.552 lbs/cu.ft. Note, kg/cu.m divided by 16.01846 = lbs/cu.ft
|
Wood |
Density (kg/cu.m) | Density (lbs/cu.ft |
| Afromosia | 705 | 44.0 |
| Apple | 660-830 | 41.2 |
| Ash,black | 540 | 33.7 |
| Ash,white | 670 | 41.8 |
| Aspen | 420 | 26.2 |
| Balsa | 170 | 10.6 |
| Bamboo | 300-400 | 18.7 |
| Birch(British) | 670 | 41.8 |
| Cedar,red | 380 | 23.7 |
| Cypress | 510 | 31.8 |
| DouglasFir | 530 | 33.1 |
| Ebony | 960-1120 | 59.9 |
| Elm(English) | 600 | 37.5 |
| Elm(Wych) | 690 | 43.1 |
| Elm(Rock) | 815 | 50.9 |
| Iroko | 655 | 40.9 |
| Larch | 590 | 36.8 |
| Lignum_Vitae | 1280-1370 | 79.9 |
| Mahogany(Honduras) | 545 | 34.0 |
| Mahogany(African) | 495-850 | 30.9 |
| Maple | 755 | 47.1 |
| Oak | 590-930 | 36.8 |
| Pine(Oregon) | 530 | 33.1 |
| Pine(Parana) | 560 | |
| Pine(Canadian) | 350-560 | 0.0 |
| Pine(Red) | 370-660 | 23.1 |
| Redwood(American) | 450 | > 28.1 |
| Redwood(European) | 510 | 31.8 |
| Spruce(Canadian) | 450 | 28.1 |
| Spruce(Sitka) | 450 | 28.1 |
| Sycamore | 590 | 36.8 |
| Teak | 630-720 | 39.3 |
| Willow | 420 | 26.2 |
*Cypress, Douglas Fir, Ebony, Elm ( English ), Elm ( Wych ), Elm ( Rock ), Iroko, Larch, Lignum Vitae, Mahogany ( Honduras ), Mahogany ( African ), Maple, Oak, Pine ( Oregon ), Pine ( Parana ), Pine ( Canadian ), Pine ( Red ), Redwood ( American ), Redwood ( European ), Spruce ( Canadian ), Spruce ( Sitka ), Sycamore, Teak, Willow Wood - seasoned & dry kg/cu.m
You won't usually find a conversion from kilograms to grams - the prefix 'kilo' means '1,000' so a kilogram is in fact 1,000 grams in the same way as a kilometer is 1,000 metres [or about 1,000 yards in 'old money']. I have put a few in the tables because visitors have asked for them. More prefixes can be found on another table.
One handy metric link between units to remember is that 1 Litre [1000cc] of pure water weighs 1 kilogram.
More info of this article can be found on the web at:
http://www.simetric.co.uk/si_wood.htm