Wood fibres (also spelled wood fibers, see
spelling differences
Despite the various English dialects spoken from country to country and within different regions of the same country, there are only slight regional variations in English orthography, the two most notable variations being British and America ...
) are usually
cellulosic elements that are extracted from trees and used to make materials including
paper
Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distribut ...
.
The end paper product (paper, paperboard, tissue, cardboard, etc.) dictates the species, or species blend, that is best suited to provide the desirable sheet characteristics, and also dictates the required fibre processing (chemical treatment, heat treatment, mechanical "brushing" or refining, etc.).
In North America, virgin (non-recycled) wood fibre is primarily extracted from
hardwood
Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes ...
(deciduous) trees and
softwood
Scots Pine, a typical and well-known softwood
Softwood is wood from gymnosperm trees such as conifers. The term is opposed to hardwood, which is the wood from angiosperm trees. The main differences between hardwoods and softwoods is that th ...
(coniferous) trees. The wood fibre can be extracted as a primary product, or collected during the milling of lumber.
Wood fibres can also be
recycled from used paper materials.
Paper
Wood fibres are treated by combining them with other additives which break down the fibres into a spongy mass called
pulp. The pulp is then processed, and the network of tiny fibres is pressed flat, becoming paper.
Construction material
Wood fibres can be pressed into hard, flat panels which can be used as a less expensive alternative to wood or plywood in situations not requiring structural strength.
Hydroculture
Wood fibres can be used as a substrate in
hydroponics
Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions in aqueous solvents. Terrestrial or aquatic plant ...
.
Wood wool (i.e. wood slivers) have been a substrate of choice since the earliest days of the hydroponics research.
However, more recent research suggests that wood fibre can have detrimental effects on "plant growth regulators".
Composites
Wood fibres can be combined with thermoplastics to create strong, waterproof products for outdoor use, such as deck boards or outdoor furniture.
See also
*
Hemp paper
Hemp paper is paper varieties consisting exclusively or to a large extent from pulp obtained from fibers of industrial hemp. The products are mainly specialty papers such as cigarette paper, banknotes and technical filter papers. Compared to woo ...
*
Pulp (paper)
Pulp is a lignocellulosic fibrous material prepared by chemically or mechanically separating cellulose fibers from wood, fiber crops, waste paper, or rags. Mixed with water and other chemical or plant-based additives, pulp is the major raw m ...
*
Woodfibre, British Columbia
*
Wood flour
Sawdust (or wood dust) is a by-product or waste product of woodworking operations such as sawing, sanding, milling, planing, and routing. It is composed of small chippings of wood. These operations can be performed by woodworking machiner ...
, a form of wood fibre
References
{{Wood products
Cellulose