PROPOSAL OF AN ANALYTICAL MODEL TO PREDICT THE BEHAVIOR OF THE PARTIAL COMPRESSION PERPENDICULAR TO THE GRAIN OF WOOD (PART 1) : AN ANALYTICAL MODEL FOR THE PARTIAL COMPRESSION PERPENDICULAR TO THE GRAIN WITH EQUIVALENT DISPLACEMENT TO THE LOAD POINT

This paper proposes an analytical model to predict the behavior of the partial compression perpendicular to the grain with equivalent displacement to the load point of wood. The model consists of two types of springs: axial springs to represent the compressive properties perpendicular to the grain, and shear springs to account for the shear force transfer to the surrounding areas outside the loaded zone. For the full-scale specimens, the ratios of analytical to experimental results averaged 0.90–1.15 for initial stiffness and 0.88–1.10 for loads at specific displacements up to 10 mm, validating the applicability of the analytical model.