Can the impulse propagation speed from cross-section tomography explain the conditioned density of wood?

Tomography is a wave-based technique used to depicture tree cross-sections; specifically, impulse tomography uses data given by the passage of impulse waves, which were primarily influenced by density, modulus of elasticity, and moisture content of wood. The influence of wood characteristics on various kinds of waves has been extensively studied, allowing the establishment of statistical correlations between wave behavior and wood properties. In this context, the relationship between impulse speed from cross-section tomography and conditioned density that was obtained on diametrical sample by X-ray densitometry was analyzed using logs of three tree species with different densities that were air dried to 12 % moisture content. For each species, means from 5 mm length intervals of conditioned density profile graph (ρ₁₂%) and impulse speed distribution graph (S₁₂%) on the same diametrical sample are used to fit models. Joining data from all species, the exponential model [Formula: see text] was obtained with correlation coefficient of 0.85 and highly significant parameters. The results indicate that conditioned density could be explained by impulse speed on the cross-section, but research is necessary to make a useful tool out of it.