Tropical wood · Africa
Mukulungu wood
Mukulungu (Autranella congolensis, family Sapotaceae) is a tropical timber from Africa. Air-dry, it weighs about 60 lb/ft³ (961 kg/m³). The figures are from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 335–336.
Other names, by country: Elanzok, Elang (Cameroon), Kabulungu (Zaire).
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, dry
- Not printed
- Air-dry density
- 60 lb/ft³ (961 kg/m³)
- Basic specific gravity
- 0.78 oven-dry weight, green volume
- As printed: “Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) 0.78; air-dry density 60 pcf.”
- Shrinkage, green to oven-dry
- 7.4% tangential
- Radial 5.8%, volumetric 14.8%
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 | 21,800 psi (150 MPa) | — | 12,700 psi (88 MPa) |
| 12% MC | 23,000 psi (159 MPa) | 2.15 million psi (14.8 GPa) | 11,900 psi (82 MPa) |
A dash means the sheet prints no value; none is filled in.
What the data sheet says
- Color, grain and texture
- Heartwood red to reddish-brown with darker streaks; sapwood grayish, not always sharply demarcated from the heartwood. Texture is fine and even; grain usually straight, sometimes interlocked; somewhat lustrous. Dust is very irritating to mucous membranes.
- Working properties
- Saws and machines fairly easily but with dulling of tools due to silica content; dresses to a smooth finish; difficult to glue; good ventilation is required to remove irritating dust.
- Durability
- Heartwood is rated as very durable though there may be slight termite attack. Resistant to dilute acids. Good weathering characteristics.
- Uses
- Heavy construction, flooring, furniture and cabinetmaking, acid vats, turnery, joinery.
- Where it grows
- Widely distributed throughout the dense equatorial forests.
Quoted from Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 335–336, 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 mukulungu against other woods on hardness, weight, movement and color, every figure from the Wood Handbook.