Blast Resistant Wood Proves Durable

If you walked in late to this session, you may have thought you were walking into a Taekwondo class instead of a composites forum. Standing at the front was a gentleman demonstrating the ease of breaking a wooden panel, yet when it came to the FRP wood panel he had a little trouble. Larry Parent, senior R&D program manager for the University of Maine-Advanced Structures Composites Center (AEWC), presented the school’s research findings on blast-resistant wood. The panels, for the U.S. military, were designed to be lighter and stronger than normal wood paneling.  Results showed that the reinforced wood absorbed six to seven times more energy. Attendee Ervin Geiger, engineer manager for Advanced Processes Technologies, said “I came to this session because it is something unique. The most impressive thing to me is how much composites add to the strength of the wood.” AEWC began research for the U.S. military and would like to extend its application to public and private buildings to aid in natural disaster.