Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall

Abstract Moisture diffusion in wood remains incompletely understood due to its complex hierarchical structure. This study develops a theoretical fractal moisture diffusion model for the wood cell wall, incorporating its structural geometry, and upscales it to bulk wood using electrical resistance mo...

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Main Authors: Dessie T. Tibebu, Stavros Avramidis
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SpringerOpen 2025-06-01
Series:Journal of Wood Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s10086-025-02193-1
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author Dessie T. Tibebu
Stavros Avramidis
author_facet Dessie T. Tibebu
Stavros Avramidis
author_sort Dessie T. Tibebu
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Moisture diffusion in wood remains incompletely understood due to its complex hierarchical structure. This study develops a theoretical fractal moisture diffusion model for the wood cell wall, incorporating its structural geometry, and upscales it to bulk wood using electrical resistance modeling and validation. The model accounts for fractal dimensions, porosity, and pore size distribution. Water vapor sorption data, obtained via dynamic sorption, were used to derive experimental diffusion coefficients, while mercury intrusion porosimetry characterized pore size distributions and calculated pore fractal dimensions. Model validation showed that predicted diffusion coefficients aligned with experimental values at low moisture contents. Fractal diffusivity was negatively correlated with pore size ratio and fractal dimensions of pores and tortuosity but positively correlated with porosity. These findings support the development of predictive models for wood geometric properties and moisture diffusivity based on structural attributes.
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series Journal of Wood Science
spelling doaj-art-0da564d37f1e442ab351c2c554a8aa722025-08-20T03:25:15ZengSpringerOpenJournal of Wood Science1611-46632025-06-0171111410.1186/s10086-025-02193-1Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wallDessie T. Tibebu0Stavros Avramidis1Department of Wood Science and Engineering, College of Forestry, Oregon State UniversityDepartment of Wood Science, Faculty of Forestry, The University of British ColumbiaAbstract Moisture diffusion in wood remains incompletely understood due to its complex hierarchical structure. This study develops a theoretical fractal moisture diffusion model for the wood cell wall, incorporating its structural geometry, and upscales it to bulk wood using electrical resistance modeling and validation. The model accounts for fractal dimensions, porosity, and pore size distribution. Water vapor sorption data, obtained via dynamic sorption, were used to derive experimental diffusion coefficients, while mercury intrusion porosimetry characterized pore size distributions and calculated pore fractal dimensions. Model validation showed that predicted diffusion coefficients aligned with experimental values at low moisture contents. Fractal diffusivity was negatively correlated with pore size ratio and fractal dimensions of pores and tortuosity but positively correlated with porosity. These findings support the development of predictive models for wood geometric properties and moisture diffusivity based on structural attributes.https://doi.org/10.1186/s10086-025-02193-1WoodFractal dimensionMoisture diffusion coefficientPore structureMercury intrusion porosimetryPore size distribution
spellingShingle Dessie T. Tibebu
Stavros Avramidis
Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
Journal of Wood Science
Wood
Fractal dimension
Moisture diffusion coefficient
Pore structure
Mercury intrusion porosimetry
Pore size distribution
title Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
title_full Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
title_fullStr Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
title_full_unstemmed Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
title_short Fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
title_sort fractal modeling of moisture diffusion in wood cell wall
topic Wood
Fractal dimension
Moisture diffusion coefficient
Pore structure
Mercury intrusion porosimetry
Pore size distribution
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s10086-025-02193-1
work_keys_str_mv AT dessiettibebu fractalmodelingofmoisturediffusioninwoodcellwall
AT stavrosavramidis fractalmodelingofmoisturediffusioninwoodcellwall