WoodExter
Behaviour of wood used outdoors above ground
The aim of the WoodExter project was to provide technical tools for civil engineers and architects to assess the service life of wood and wood products outdoors. The complete development of such aids was not planned within the scope of this project, but rather to focus on the development of mathematical models for predicting the service life of the products "facade elements and floors outdoors". For this purpose, systematically relevant data were collected over the project period.
Statistical analyses were used to compare results from laboratory and field tests with products in use. Based on these analyses, the mathematical models were then validated and calibrated.
In contrast to other materials for which meaningful models already exist, such as metal or concrete, similar models for wood have not yet been developed. The complexity of wood also requires variable models. The progressive development of information technology enables the development of models with multiple parameters for the first time.
The collection of relevant data is the basis for mathematical models for predicting service life. The research project was tasked to generate data for untreated, modified and coated wood. The Department of Wood Biology and Wood Products at the Georg-August-University of Göttingen is a leading research institute in the fields of chemical wood modification and the durability of wood and wood products and has contributed its expertise in these fields to the research project.