Structural and mechanical properties of Yew wood

Yew wood (Taxus baccata L.) is known for its extraordinary mechanical performance compared to other gymnosperms. However, only few mechanical data are available from literature so far. Therefore, the goal of this study was to determine mechanical properties of yew wood such as longitudinal Young's modulus in bending, fracture toughness K-IC, shear strength and tensile strength perpendicular to the grain. For comparison only, all tests were applied on spruce wood as well. Furthermore, we measured the microfibril angles of selected yew samples. Our results confirm the high toughness of yew wood. The Young's modulus is remarkably low taking the high density of yew into account. A large microfibril angle is discussed as possible explanation for the low Young's modulus.