FPInnovations’ three-generation floor vibration-controlled design methods in NBCC and CSA O86 ensure market acceptance by consumers. Since 1990, there have been very few consumer complaints. This reinforces the use of wood as a quality building material and contributes to expanding market shares of wood construction in Canada.
This review explores the benefits, challenges, limitations, logistics, and cost-effectiveness of different management options to convert conifer-dominated stands to aspen-dominated stands. These alternatives can include overstory removal (harvesting, bulldozing, shear blading, prescribed burning) and site preparation (root trenching, drag scarification, broadcast burning) treatments. On sites where parent aspen trees are not present in the original stand, tree planting will be necessary albeit costly in comparison to regeneration by suckering. While extensive literature exists on the regeneration of trembling aspen through suckering, research on artificial establishment with seedlings and its requirements is still in its infancy and rapidly developing.
WoodST is capable of calculating heat transfer, charring rate, load-displacement curve as well as the time and mode of failure of timber structures exposed to fire, thus providing a cost-competitive solution for the fire safety analysis of timber structures. This InfoNote briefly introduces the development and verification of WoodST. Two applications of WoodST are also demonstrated.
Hosted by Edouard Proust, this presentation by David Bevly held on February 10, 2021 highlights an important component of FPInnovations' Transportation and Infrastructure group's work. The concept of truck platooning, inspired by pelotons of cyclists and originally developed for highway use to obtain fuel savings, utilizes technology to maintain the desired distance between trucks by controlling acceleration and braking, and the relative lateral position of the vehicles by steering, reacting faster than a driver can. Truck platooning has attracted the attention of the natural resources sector and its implementation is expected to increase the productivity of drivers. By allowing the operation of driverless following trucks replicating the path set by the human operated leader vehicle, the concept could help mitigate the workforce shortage that impact the sector while supporting the supply of lumber to mills across the country.
Abstract
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Cette présentation de David Bevly a été organisée le 10 février 2021 par Edouard Proust. Elle met en lumière une composante importante du travail effectué par le groupe Transports et Infrastructures de FPInnovations. Le concept d’opération de camions en peloton est inspiré des pelotons de cyclistes et a été mis au point à l’origine pour des applications autoroutières avec pour objectif une réduction de la consommation de carburant. Les camions sont équipés d’une technologie permettant le contrôle de l’accélération, du freinage et de la direction offrant la possibilité de maintenir la distance de suivi entre les véhicules ainsi que leur positionnement latéral relatif. En autorisant la mise en œuvre de camions suiveurs entièrement autonomes et qui répliquent le tracé du camion de tête opéré par un chauffeur, le concept pourrait à terme aider à minimiser l’impact du manque de chauffeurs dans l’industrie tout en supportant l’approvisionnement en fibre des scieries à travers le Canada.
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The clean air initiative led by the British Columbia Ministry of Environment seeks to develop innovative methods to improve community air quality by utilizing harvest residues and minimizing the volume of fibre burned at roadside. Retaining processed tops as roadside oriented piles is proposed as an alternative to burning debris.
These burn trials have demonstrated that in this unique arrangement of fuels and interaction of site-specific variables, particular areas of the piles will be more vulnerable to ignition sources which can lead to sustained burning and high intensity fire behaviour. In addition to the low fuel moisture conditions, other fuel properties, such as the close proximity of piles, high volume of fine fuels (branches and needles) and orientation of piles to road all contributed to enhanced burning at this site.
Building high energy efficiency has become a must to reduce carbon emission from the built environment and to meet needs of consumers. Industrialized construction provides an effective way to produce highly insulated and airtight building envelopes to achieve superior building performance, such as Net Zero Energy. However, it is important that as other attributes (e.g., seismic, wind, fire, vibration, etc.) are being addressed, further research is needed to develop well rounded building envelope solutions. Meanwhile, improvement may be made in automated production equipment and software to optimize and monetize these solutions.
This new study aims to generate hygrothermal, particularly moisture-related performance data for light wood-frame walls meeting the R22 effective (RSI 3.85) requirement for buildings up to six storeys in the City of Vancouver. The overarching goal is to identify and develop durable exterior wood-frame walls to assist in the design and construction of energy efficient buildings across the country. Twelve test wall panels in six types of wall assemblies are assessed in this study. The wall panels, each measuring 4 ft. (1200 mm) wide and 8 ft. (2400 mm) tall, form portions of the exterior walls of a test hut located in the rear yard of FPInnovations’ Vancouver laboratory. This report, second in a series on this study, documents the performance of these wall assemblies based on the data collected over 19 months’ period from October 2018 to May 2020, covering two winter seasons and one summer.
FPInnovations’ Wildfire Operations Advisory group has asked its researchers to explore a method by which the performance of water-enhancing products can be repeatedly assessed in the laboratory. A new test method, known as the crib test, was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of water-enhancing products on burning woody fuel to simulate direct-attack aerial operations.
This report outlines the methodology for the crib test and describes the findings from performance evaluation tests conducted at the Protective Clothing and Equipment Research Facility (PCERF) at the University of Alberta.
The USDA Forest Service’s Qualified Product List (QPL) provides guidance on the range of permissible mix ratios for water-enhancer products. Due to the proprietary nature of water-enhancer products, there are several unknowns about the rheology of the permissible mix ratios.
This study focused on mapping the viscosity of various suppressant products as a function of their mix ratios. The results revealed a wide range of viscosities across products, with each product showing a different non-linear relationship with different mix ratios.
The results from this study can help understand the optimum viscosity range to achieve desired drop characteristics during aerial operations.
The aim of this study was to capture data on area-based water delivery systems, specifically in the context of logistics, systems differentiation, water delivery, and its localized effects. FPInnovations successfully collaborated with Fire & Flood to obtain this data. A two-day test was executed during which Fire & Flood set up their 4- and 12-inch systems and carried out sprinkler operations.
The fire resistance of cross-laminated timber (CLT) could be improved by treating the lamina with fire retardants. The major issues with this technology are the reduced bondability of the treated lamina with commercial adhesives. This study assessed several surface preparation methods that could improve the bondability and bond durability of fire-retardant treated wood with two commercial adhesives. Four surface preparation methods, including moisture/heat/pressure, surface planing, surface chemical treatment, and surface plasma treatment were assessed for their impact on the bondability and bond durability of lodgepole pine lamina. The block shear test results indicated that all surface preparation methods were somewhat effective in improving bond performance of fire-retardant treated wood compared to the untreated control wood samples, depending on the types of fire retardants and wood adhesives applied in the treatment process and bonding process. The selection of surface preparation, fire retardant, and wood adhesive should be considered interactively to obtain the best bond properties and fire performance. It may be possible to effectively bond the treated lamina with PUR adhesive without any additional surface preparation for the fire retardant used in the treatment at FPInnovations.
FPInnovations investigated the possibility of collecting real time temperature-altitude data that could be used to determine the stability of the atmosphere. Unstable atmospheric conditions have been associated with erratic and extreme fire behaviour. An increased awareness of atmospheric stability conditions would provide fire managers an additional tool to plan firefighting activities. A firefighting aircraft with a specific sensor was sourced and two years of data was collected and analysed to determine if temperature profiles could be built using the data. Results show the data was sufficiently accurate and was collected at a frequency where temperature lapse rates can be calculated, and the stability of the atmosphere in the area of a fire could be determined.
Hemlock can have higher moisture content than most other native trees, causing them to sink. Hemlock lumens have large pits (valves) that allow easy transport of water into the wood.
Bigger rings = bigger lumens. Younger hemlock or hemlock tops are more susceptible to sinking. The bigger the rings the more likely to take on water.
This guide provides users with easy to use charts to assist with the design of geosynthetic-reinforced unpaved roads over weak soils. It permits the estimation of key input parameters through simple procedures and judgment based on experience. Further optimization of designs may however be possible through detailed calculations and lab testing which are encouraged
whenever feasible.
Mass timber is a generic name for a broad range of thick and heavy wood products such as cross-laminated timber (CLT), dowel-laminated timber (DLT), nail-laminated timber (NLT), and gluelaminated timber (GLT), among others. So far, vibration-controlled design methods have been developed mostly for CLT floors.
Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF) asked FPInnovations to conduct a field trial of two heavy helicopters that had recently been installed with on-board injection and mixing systems. The study focussed on determining the accuracy and reproducibility of these systems to produce effectively mixed water-enhancers for aerial delivery during wildfire suppression operations.
These field trials were conducted north of Slave Lake, Alta. in June 2020. This report discusses the background, methodology, and outcomes of this equipment validation test.
The ongoing evolution of remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPASs) with recent advances in micro-sensors and imaging software has the potential to enhance the delivery of infrared imaging services for wildfire operations. Understanding the capabilities and limitations of these aircraft will aid wildfire managers in selecting appropriate RPAS platforms as another "tool in the toolbox" for hotspot detection missions on wildfires.
The current regeneration challenges posed by salvage logging following large-scale disturbances in western Canada, such as wildfire and mountain pine beetle, warrant the need for cost-effective reforestation strategies. Mechanized ground-based direct seeding was assessed in a variety of conditions to explore viability, determine which factors influence success, and determine the expected establishment rate when seeding with B.C. tree species. This report includes guidelines and recommendations for implementing direct seeding in B.C., based on observations from operational trials established in 2013-2017 across the province.
This study tested ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) ropes for log load securement. Destructive testing of used rope samples done in a previous project found that the strength of these ropes decreased with use. To address this problem, the diameter of the synthetic rope was increased. In addition, a different type of rope with a UHMWPE inner core covered with a polyester protective jacket was tested. The outer jacket protected the inner core from dirt and abrasion which may help mitigate the loss in strength that occurs with use. Wrappers were put into service and tested for breakage after three and six months of use.
