Tropical wood · Africa
Adjouaba wood
Adjouaba (Dacryodes spp., family Burseraceae) is a tropical timber from Africa. Air-dry, it weighs about 41–51 lb/ft³ (657–817 kg/m³). The figures are from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 383–384.
Other names, by country: Ozigo, Assia, Igaganga, Ossabel (Gabon), Safoukala (Congo-Brazzaville), Mouguengueri (Zaire).
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, dry
- Not printed
- Air-dry density
- 41–51 lb/ft³ (657–817 kg/m³)
- Basic specific gravity
- 0.54–0.67 oven-dry weight, green volume
- As printed: “Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) variable with species mostly 0.54-0.67; air-dry density 41-51 pcf.”
- Shrinkage
- Not as one figure
- As printed: “Shrinkage green to ovendry: radial 4.4-7.5%; tangential 5.8-8.2%; volumetric 13.0-15.6%.”
One source: USDA Forest Products Laboratory, Tropical Timbers of the World (Chudnoff, 1979 edition), the only published source read for this wood
Strength
Bending strength is the modulus of rupture (MOR); stiffness is the modulus of elasticity (MOE); crushing strength is compression parallel to the grain. The sheet collects these from published tests: it prints 3 data sets, from different tests and sources, so they can differ widely; all are shown, in the sheet's order, each at the moisture content printed beside it, never restated as 12%.
| Moisture | Bending strength (MOR) | Stiffness (MOE) | Crushing strength |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12% MC | 18,600 psi (128 MPa) | 1.84 million psi (12.7 GPa) | 10,100 psi (70 MPa) |
| 12% MC | 16,500 psi (114 MPa) | 1.84 million psi (12.7 GPa) | 8,100 psi (56 MPa) |
| 12% MC | 18,600 psi (128 MPa) | 2.71 million psi (18.7 GPa) | 8,900 psi (61 MPa) |
A dash means the sheet prints no value; none is filled in.
What the data sheet says
- Color, grain and texture
- Heartwood pink-, gray-buff, or yellowish; not clearly demarcated from the sapwood. Texture moderately fine to coarse; grain straight, wavy, or interlocked; sometimes lustrous; gum ducts and silica present.
- Working properties
- Rather difficult to saw because of silica content but generally reported to work fairly well with hand and machine tools; good slicing and peeling characteristics; glues readily and takes a fine finish.
- Durability
- Heartwood has moderate to low resistance to attack by decay fungi, also liable to termite attack.
- Uses
- Flooring, furniture components, veneer and plywood, joinery.
- Where it grows
- West Africa, prevalent in rain forests.
Quoted from Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 383–384, a USDA Forest Products Laboratory work in the public domain.
Work it out for your project
- Rank woods for furniture with the species picker
Weigh adjouaba against other woods on hardness, weight, movement and color, every figure from the Wood Handbook.