Physical and Mechanical Properties of Sabiá Wood (Mimosa caesalpiniaefolia Bentham.)

Wood is a natural material with technological properties that vary between species (genetic factors) and for the same species (edaphoclimatic factors). For the use of wood in civil construction, physical and mechanical properties are of interest. The aim of this research was to determine the physical and mechanical properties of the Sabiá wood (Mimosa caesalpiniaefolia Bentham.) from Caatinga, and to evaluate the possibility of its use in civil construction. From a batch obtained from Juazeiro do Norte (CE), Brazil, with moisture content 12%, test specimens were fabricated to determine their physical and mechanical properties, according to ABNT NBR 7190:1997 Brazilian Standard Code. As physical properties were determined: density at 12% moisture (ρ12); radial (RRT), tangential (RTL) and longitudinal (RLT) shrinkages. Mechanical properties considered were: strength in compression parallel (fc0) and perpendicular (fc90) to the grain, tensile strength parallel (ft0) and perpendicular (ft90) to the grain, shear strength (fv0) and cleavage (fs0) parallel to the grain, modulus of elasticity (EM) and rupture (fM) in static bending, and modulus of elasticity in compression parallel (Ec0) and perpendicular (Ec90) to the grain. The characteristic strengths (fk) were also determined for including the wood batch in the strength classes (ABNT NBR 7190:1997). The results obtained allow to classify the studied species as C40 / dicotyledons (fc0,k = 48 MPa) with density 1.04 g/cm3 and small values ​​of shrinkage. These results enable the use of Sabiá wood for structural purposes in civil construction.