International Journal of Environmental Science and Development

Abstract—There are many small, artificial cedar forested areas in Japan, although these areas are often destroyed through neglect. The promotion of forest maintenance is desired, and using unutilized woody biomass as heating fuel is one way to do so. In this study, drying methods of cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) logs to be used as heating fuel were examined. Log samples with different patterns of scratches and holes were subjected to a drying test. The experimental results show that logs with scratches or holes dried more rapidly than normal logs. Logs with four scratches dried more rapidly than those with two scratches. Logs with larger holes dried more rapidly than those with small holes, and those with three holes dried more rapidly than those with one hole. The drying time to reach the fiber saturation point was reduced from 5 months to 3 months using this simple method.

Index Terms—Unused woody biomass, cedar log, drying, heat utilization.

Van H. Hoang is with the Inage Ward, Chiba-shi, Chiba, Japan (e-mail: hoanghieu@chiba-u.jp).
K. Baba, Y. Kawabata, A. T. Saito, T. Wajima, and H. Nakagome are with the Inage Ward, Chiba-shi, Chiba, Japan (e-mail: afsa3284@chiba-u.jp, z8t0266@students.chiba-u.jp, atsaito@r07.itscom.net, wajima@tu.chiba-u.ac.jp, nakagome@tu.chiba-u.ac.jp).

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Cite: Van H. Hoang, K. Baba, Y. Kawabata, A. T. Saito, T. Wajima, and H. Nakagome, "Drying Methods of Unutilized Cedar Logs for Use as a Source of Heating Fuel," International Journal of Environmental Science and Development vol. 7, no. 6, pp. 469-472, 2016.