TLF’s new artificial wood drying plant

Up to 2007 TLF seasoned wood using natural drying but an artificial drying plant of the hot air or conventional type is now in operation, which offers the following technical and productive advantages over the previous system:

• It is possible to obtain any humidity values regardless of climate and atmospheric conditions.
• The product is more homogenous. This produces better conditions for subsequent processing, resulting in an improvement in the quality of the finished product.
• Drying times are reduced, resulting in better capital immobilisation and more flexibility in purchases and the organisation of production.
• The wood is sterilised against insects, larvae, eggs (this is a temporary effect and preservative treatment is necessary).

From discussions held with experts in the sector, we can say that there is nowhere else like it in Italy. Let’s try to get a better understanding of how it works.

Wood drying consists in the removal of unwanted internal humidity and this serves to:

• Make the subsequent processing possible, or simpler (mechanical, gluing, varnishing, etc.).
• Stabilise the material to the thermohygrometric conditions of the environment in which it will be used, in order to avoid any variations in size or deformations.
• Avoid alterations caused by fungi.

Natural seasoning is a drying process which depends on natural climatic factors. It is carried out by forming stacks (Figure 1) with suitable devices (boarding, wind orientation, shelter from sun and rain, etc.) and leaving it to dry for a sufficient time, which may vary between one month and one year.

Figure 1: Stacking of sawn deciduous wood during natural seasoning.

Artificial drying (Figure 2) is a procedure whereby the wood is brought to preset humidity values by opportune intervention on the wood itself or on environmental factors (temperature, humidity, pressure, etc.). In contrast to the natural procedure, it is carried out by introducing the stacks into a dryer where it is possible to vary the thermohygrometric conditions in a controlled way, regulated in time according to very precise cycles.

Figure 2: Diagram of operation of TLF’s hot air drying plant.

More specifically, TLF’s drying plant (see photo) is heated using hot water (90° C) produced by a new biomass boiler which burns the shavings produced during the wood processing. This makes it possible to benefit from processing waste which is a clean fuel (the balance between the carbon anhydride produced and emitted equals zero) thereby avoiding having to resort to other fossil fuels which produce “greenhouse” gas. This innovation thus demonstrates TLF’s undisputed technical and planning leadership.

Photo: TLF’s hot air drying plant.

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