Preservation of Rubberwood and its application as a structural member

Wood is a base material for manufacture of a multiplicity of valuable products. There is a growing scarcity of wood due to the increased demand and dwindling forest resources and it is becoming prohibitively costly. Thus new sources of wood are to be found out and used. Rubberwood (RW) is available from spent rubber trees in plantations. In this context, the rubber plantations in South India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and other places have vast potential. This paper presents the results of a study on the use of RW for structural applications. The durability of RW treated with different preservatives and physical properties of RW were studied and the results are reported.