The Influence of Mass Loss on Wooden Elements Case Study

Abstract The durability of wooden structures is a subject of great interest because a better understanding of the evolution of wooden elements is needed, together with the factors that intervene in the degradation process and the manner in which they can be prevented. The exposure time of structures to environmental variations is important because the presence of humidity is affecting wooden elements the most. Their exposure to humid surroundings or in which temperature and humidity variations are not constant, increases the moisture content of wood and leads to the formation of biological environments that attack the wood and reduce its resistance, intervening in the building safety and utility. The current study follows the evolution of a wooden structure subjected to changes of the transversal section due to the presence of humidity until the moment in which the wooden piece does not verify anymore the safety conditions from the calculations for compression, tension and bending.