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The Effects of Environmental Factors on Wood Decay

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The Effects of Environmental Factors on Wood Decay | Science Fair Projects | STEM Projects
In this project, you will investigate how different environmental factors can affect the strength of wood. You will submerge pieces of wood in rain water, acid rain, sea water, and wet soil for two weeks, and then measure the strength of the wood by applying weights to it.

Hypothesis

The hypothesis is that the wood samples that were immersed in soil will start to decay and become weaker at a faster rate.

Method & Materials

You will inspect the dimensions of the wooden planks and divide them into five groups. You will then fill four pails with rain water, acid rain, sea water, and wet soil, and place the planks in the respective pails. The fifth group of planks will be left in a dry place. After two weeks, you will take the planks out of the pails and leave them to dry for three days. Finally, you will measure the strength of the wooden planks by applying weights to them.
You will need 20 oak wood planks, 16 bricks, 20 weights, tap water, a pail of rain water, a bottle of vinegar, 1000 grams of salt, four pails, soil, a rope, pH paper, and a black marker pen.

Results

After two weeks, it was observed that the wooden planks that were kept in the moist soil were the weakest among the five groups. The hypothesis that the wood immersed in the soil will start to decay and become weaker at a faster rate was proven to be true.

Why do this project?

This science project is interesting and unique because it explores the effects of different environmental factors on the strength of wood, which is an important factor in the construction of houses.

Also Consider

Consider repeating the experiment, this time exposing the wood for different lengths of time (1 week, 2 weeks etc) in order to study the rate at which the wood will weaken. Also, try using other types of wood like Pine, Fir, Hemlock or Birch.

Full project details

You can find additional information and details for this science fair project here. Have fun exploring!

Related videos

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