Tropical wood · Africa
Afzelia wood
Afzelia (Afzelia spp., family Leguminosae) is a tropical timber from Africa. Dry, its Janka hardness is 1,770–1,850 lbf (7,873–8,229 N), and air-dry it weighs about 51 lb/ft³ (817 kg/m³). The figures are from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 321–322.
Other names, by country: Doussié (Cameroons), Apa, Aligna (Nigeria), Mkora, Mkola, Mbambakofi (Tanzania), Chanfuta, Mussacossa (Mozambique), Beyo, Meli, Azza (Uganda).
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, dry
- 1,770–1,850 lbf (7,873–8,229 N)
- As printed: “Janka side hardness 1,770-1,850 lb for dry material.”
- Air-dry density
- 51 lb/ft³ (817 kg/m³)
- Basic specific gravity
- 0.67 oven-dry weight, green volume
- As printed: “Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) 0.67; air-dry density 51 pcf.”
- Shrinkage, green to 12% moisture content
- 1.5% tangential
- Radial 1.0%
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 2 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 | 18,100 psi (125 MPa) | 1.9 million psi (13.1 GPa) | 11,490 psi (79 MPa) |
| 12% MC | 16,640 psi (115 MPa) | 1.51 million psi (10.4 GPa) | 10,030 psi (69 MPa) |
A dash means the sheet prints no value; none is filled in.
What the data sheet says
- Color, grain and texture
- Heartwood reddish-brown after exposure; sapwood pale straw to whitish, well defined. Texture moderate to coarse; grain straight to interlocked; medium luster; without characteristic odor or taste. Some pores contain a yellow dyestuff which, under moist conditions, can discolor textiles, paper, or other cellulosic materials.
- Working properties
- Rather difficult to saw and machine because of rapid dulling of saw teeth and cutters but works to a smooth finish; some tearing of grain on radial faces. Difficult to stain where pores contain yellow deposits. Classified moderate in wood bending properties. Dust may be irritating. Difficult to glue.
- Durability
- Heartwood is rated as very durable and moderately resistant to termite attack; sapwood liable to attack by powder-post beetles. In East African waters, teredo are slow to attack and develop. Pholad attack is more rapid.
- Uses
- Exterior joinery (window frames, doors), flooring, heavy construction including harbor and dock work, furniture, because of good acid resistance used for vats and tanks.
- Where it grows
- West, Central, and East Africa. Occur in the dense evergreen forests, but also common in the savanna and coastal forests of East Africa.
Quoted from Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 321–322, 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 afzelia against other woods on hardness, weight, movement and color, every figure from the Wood Handbook.