Advanced sorting technologies for optimal wood products and woody biomass utilization

Forest materials represent great potential for advancing our goals in the 21^st century for sustainable building, energy independence, and carbon sequestration. A critical component of an improved system for producing bioproducts and bioenergy from forest materials is the ability to sort trees, stems, and logs into end-product categories that represent their highest potential values. Nondestructive testing and evaluation technologies have been explored by scientists, engineers, and managers around the world for their ability to assess wood and fiber properties of individual trees, stems, and logs. Strong relationships were found exist between various acoustic measurements on trees/logs and fundamental wood properties such as microfibril angle, density, and various physical and mechanical properties. Commercial field-ready tools are now available that are capable of sorting this biomass based upon fundamental properties that determine product potential. The research results can be applied at a number of stages in the operational value chain, from timberland through to the processing site. This paper introduces an array of acoustic tools for forest operations and demonstrates their ability to sort forest materials into categories that are suitable for their optimal uses, such as high value structural products, advanced composites, pulp and paper, and biofuels.