ELECTRIC DETERMINATION OF HIGH-MOISTURE CONTENTS IN SPRUCE

A newly developed active electrode MH 34 for measuring high moisture contents in softwoods was used to determine the moisture distribution in cross-sections of specimens taken from freshly felled spruce and to measure the moisture contents of individual samples. A comparison was made between these results and measurements of moisture content after oven-drying. A relatively accurate representation was possible of the moisture distribution, especially in the transition zone between sapwood and heartwood. For high moisture content ranges the electrically determined moisture content of individual specimens deviated from that of overn-dry samples by up to 30%. For larger samples average values of the entire moisture range showed a deviation from the actual moisture content of about 13%.