Investigation of using Acacia mangium glulam as an

alternative to reinforced concrete beams in building

construction projects in the Philippines
Halivier Legaspina

1 ABSTRACT
This document presents the format you will use for your research paper. Do not alter the format of the document.
The Abstract shall not exceed 400 words. It should include the research’s objectives, the methods used, and the
findings and conclusions.

2 BACKGROUND / INTRODUCTION
This paper will discuss about the economic and environmental impacts of the integration of glue-laminated timber
in structures in the Philippines using local fast-growing, low-cost softwood timber species, particularly the Acacia
Mangium specie; how sustainable will it be? This paper is a feasibility study of the integration of glue-laminated
timber in the Philippines as well as an in-depth analysis in its economic and environmental impacts. This is also a
comparative analysis between glue-laminated timber and concrete. Several building materials are used in the
construction of major structural elements, such as beams and columns. The most commonly known material
categories of materials are concrete, steel, and timber. The applicability of the uses of these materials depends on
the type of building, loadings, and location.

Reinforced concrete is widely used in major construction projects all across the world. It is known for its durability
and strength, in which it can withstand different forces and carry different loads in a building. However, raw
materials that are contained in reinforced concrete used in major structural elements are all gathered through
mining, and the resources for these materials are not renewable, unlike indigenous materials, such as timber and
bamboo that can be grown and reproduced over time. Once the raw materials are gathered for producing reinforced
concrete, they cannot be replaced. After several years, there might be a scarcity of the resources for this particular
building material. Also, the major component of reinforced concrete, which is the cement, cannot be recycled into
its original state, unlike steel. Hence, an alternative material, which can be reproduced, may be recommended.

Timber is one of the building materials that is used in major construction projects. It can also be applied in
construction of major structural elements such as post and lintel elements (Ramage, Burridge, Busse-Wicher,
Fereday, Reynolds, Shah, Wu, Yu, Fleming, Densley-Tingley, Allwood, Dupree, Linden, & Scherman, 2017). This
material can also be used in large bridges (Malo, 2016), proving that it can carry dynamic loads. Among the building
materials used in the construction of major structural elements, timber is the only material that is grown (Ramage,
et. al, 2017) and reproduced quickly. However, the reproduction cycles might take too long, depending on the
species of trees used for this material, especially hardwood products. Therefore, many studies indicate that many
fast-growing timber species may be used for timber production, which will take a shorter time to regrow.

One of the main issues in using timber in construction is its environmental impacts, which is the inevitable
deforestation or decline in the forestry. Although the trees, which are the sources of this building material, are
grown, but it would take decades to for them to regrow and reach the age, where each tree reaches its peak of
maturity in order to be used for major construction. This is the most usual cases especially in hardwood tree species.
Nevertheless, there are also trees that take a shorter time to grow and reach its maturity age – these are the
softwood species. One example of softwood species is the Acacia Mangium, also known as the forest mangroves
and mangium as its common names, which will be focused in this study. Acacia mangium is a fast-growing specie of
tree that can be recommended in integrating in building construction, as it takes a short amount of time to mature
and germinates a high amount of seeds (Hedge, Palanisamy, & Yi, 2013). Based on the provisions of the National
Structural Code of the Philippines 2015, the Acacia mangium timber is classified within the moderate strength
category of timber (Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines, 2016).

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Investigation of using Acacia mangium glulam as an alternative to reinforced concrete for beams in building
construction projects in the Philippines Legaspina

Timber also has properties and capabilities that are similar to reinforced concrete in terms of its behavior of resisting
different loads. Although timber has many weakness, and it alone cannot be as sturdy as reinforced concrete,
innovations has been conducted in engineering this material to produce various timber technologies that has
improved material properties, such as glue-laminated timber and many other engineered timber.

Glue-laminated timber, also known as glulam, is the commonly used engineered timber for major structural
elements in building construction projects among the other engineered timber products, such as cross-laminated
timber. It is composed of several timber planks or pieces laminated together with the use of adhesive material to
create a larger structural member (Ong, 2015). Glulam, like concrete, is classified into different categories of
strength. Depending on the specie of timber and adhesive used in its production, it can achieve a various amount of
strength as categorized in the table shown in BS EN 1194 (1999), one of the British standards in glulam.

Segundinho, França, Neto, Gonçalves, & Oliveira (2015) investigated the material properties of glulam beams using
Acacia mangium species and different adhesives for lamination.

This research is a deeper investigation of the properties of the Acacia mangium timber and its properties as a
glulam structural member. It aims to prove the sustainability of integrating this particular material as an
alternative material to reinforced concrete for beams in various building construction projects in Metro Manila.
Although, this study does not intend to discourage or omit the use of reinforced concrete, but to provide a future
long-term solution for promoting a sustainable construction design.

Although the cost for integrating Acacia mangium glulam would be higher than using concrete for beams in building
construction, there are other advantages in glulam in terms of its performance and sustainability in many aspects,
in which it would be more beneficial in the long-term run. How will it justify that Acacia mangium glulam can be
sustainably used as an alternative to concrete beams in building construction projects in Metro Manila? The main
goal of this paper is to justify the possibility of locally integrating glulam for beams in different construction projects
within Metro Manila in a feasible way in terms of construction, economy, and environment. However, it is necessary
to determine whether it is really feasible and more sustainable to integrate glue-laminated timber in the Philippines.
Some factors to consider in this study is the availability or material sources, applicability, strength, economy, and
environment; these factors can be considered interchangeably, with no particular order, as they all affect each
other. Hypothetically, consideration of these five major factors may lead to a sustainable outcome.

What do current studies and discoveries tell about Acacia mangium and the possibility of using Acacia mangium
glulam for beams?

To understand the capability of glulam timber, in which it can be integrated in major structural elements in building
construction projects, particularly beams for this study.

To identify other means of enhancing the capabilities and strength of Acacia mangium.

What are the characteristics of Acacia mangium glulam in terms of its physical, mechanical, chemical, and
construction properties?

To identify the materials used in its production, their resources and availability.

What are the various methods that Acacia mangium can be tested for its sustainability and capability as a structural
beam, and what would be the results?

To determine the different standards in its production in order to indicate its safety measures.
To determine the safety measures of constructing beams with the use of Acacia mangium glulam through its size,
span, and layout.
To address the possible structural failures caused by different casualties and phenomena.

Based on the findings drawn from this study and experiment, how does Acacia mangium perform and show its
sustainability as a structural beam that can withstand different loads?

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Investigation of using Acacia mangium glulam as an alternative to reinforced concrete for beams in building
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To further analyze and compare the different characteristics and properties of reinforced concrete and Acacia
mangium glulam timber.
To determine the advantages of both of these materials in different aspects.

To prove the sustainability of the use of timber, particularly glulam, in construction.

3 REVIEW OF LITERATURE
This is where you put your review of related literature. You may want to have a short introduction to this chapter,
stating how your literature and/or precedent review is structured.

3.1 ACACIA MANGIUM WILLD.

Acacia mangium, also known as mangium as its common name worldwide, is a fast-growing timber specie that is
native to Papua New Guinea, parts of Indonesia, and northeastern Queensland in Australia. Due to its rapid growth
and tolerance of very poor soil, it is introduced to many countries such as other Southeast Asian countries, African
countries, and parts of South America. Mangium is a quality timber that can be used in different variety, especially
in furnishing and building construction. (Hedge, Palanisamy, & Yi, 2013)

The use of such small diameter fast-growing timber specie like Acacia mangium may be able to substitute the slow-
growing hardwood species for timber construction (Herawati, Massijaya, & Nugroho, n.d.).

3.2 CHARACTERISTICS AND PROPERTIES OF ACACIA MANGIUM

Acacia mangium is categorized in medium strength group of timber species in the National Structural Code of the
Philippines 2015, having a maximum bending capacity of 15.51 MPa (2249.54 psi) and a maximum shearing capacity
of 1.95 MPa (230.61 psi) (ASEP, 2016). Many current studies have investigated the use of Acacia mangium in the
production of glulam.

Segundinho, França, Neto, Gonçalves, & Oliveira (2015) conducted shear and delamination test for Acacia mangium
glulam using various adhesives for laminating the timber planks. The shear test is used to determine the compressive
and shear capacities of Acacia mangium glulam. The adhesives in their study are liquid polyurethane (PUR) and
melamine-urea formaldehyde (MUR), which are both having a pressure of 0.80 MPa (116 psi). The result of their
test indicated that Acacia mangium glulam may be classified under the C-30 strength category of glulam timber
based on BS EN 1194:1999 (British Standard, 1999), in which it may reach a maximum bending capacity of 30 MPa
(4350 psi).

30 MPa of modulus of rupture (MOR) is required by Japan Agricultural Standard for glulam timber (JAS 234:2003)
for glulam design. Acacia mangium tested and compared with other timber species for glulam beam strength; it
was compared with African wood with the use of water-based polymer isocyanate (WBPI) (Herawati, Massijaya, &
Nugroho, n.d.), and with manii and sengon species (Komariah, Hadi, Massijaya, & Suryana, 2015). Compression
test was conducted in these studies, resulting to results that satisfies the requirements of JAS 234:2003.

3.3 METHODS FOR TESTING ACACIA MANGIUM GLULAM BEAMS

In testing Acacia mangium beams, shearing and/or bending tests may be conducted using various testing machines.
Some examples of testing apparatuses or machines for glulam beams are INSTRON MEN-102/100 machine for
bending capacity (Basterra, Balmori, Morillas, Acuña, & Casado, 2017) and Empa machine for shearing tests,
although there are many other machine models for these kind of tests.

Testing methods of glulam should be in accordance to certain standards, such as the provisions by American Institute
of Timber Construction (2007), ASTM D 143-94 (2000) and ASTM D 905-03 (1998). The result of the performance of
glulam beams should comply with the provisions of ISO 12578 (2016) and BS EN 386:2001 (2001). In testing glulam
structures, the strength of adhesives in the lamination of timber components must also be determined and must
comply with the provisions of BS EN 391:2002 (2002) and BS EN:392:2002 (2002).

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4 METHODOLOGY
The nature of research is a combination of both qualitative and quantitative. The design of this research design
consists of logical argumentation and case studies, showing the qualitative nature of research, and also simulation
and experimental, showing the quantitative nature of research.

The method of this research will be composed of several methodologies. Quantitative methods will probably be
used in this research in terms of time of growth, plantation cycle, and material properties and strength of the timber
material. Other methodologies to be executed in this research will include gathering of data from primary and
secondary sources, material testing, and mathematical validation.

The foremost method of this research is gathering of data from secondary and primary sources that are related to
glulam, which is the focus of this research. Such data to be collected are laws and standards of glulam design, glulam
production and technology, material properties, methods of testing and experimentation, material resources,
applications and limitations of glulam, and its advantages. The following methods can be done in no particular order,
but these must be executed systematically.

One of the necessary methods to be done in this research is to conduct interviews with related agencies (e.g.
Department of Environment and Natural Resources) and other professionals that has mastery and/or knowledge to
glulam.

Gathering of materials for the production of glulam is another tactic for this research, in which samples will be
collected for experimentation. The experimental part of this research is the testing of the glulam material using the
Acacia Mangium as the main timber material. The mechanical testing method for beams will be in accordance to
the usual methods for glulam beams – bending and shear tests. The cross-sectional dimension to be used for testing
glulam members for this study will be 150 millimeters wide and 300 millimeters deep. The results will be validated
through quantitative methods, such as statistical analysis.

Since this research is a design-based research and a comparative analysis, case studies of various existing structures
in Metro Manila should be done. These structures are observed visually, determining the way these buildings are
maintained and possible structural deteriorations of beams that might lead to failure, their dimensions, and
efficiency. Using the same visual criteria obtained from the ocular observation of chosen structures, simulation with
structural computations will be done using the same dimensions with glulam substituted in the material instead.

Structural computation of the actual building condition and the substituted glulam will be executed to determine
the capability of the building material. The results of these computations will be compared and analyze to determine
the efficiency of glulam, and if it really is effective to be integrated in structures in Metro Manila.

The success in the use of local softwood species, which are low-cost and fast-growing will prove that it would be a
sustainable way of integrating timber materials, particularly glue-laminated timber, in its integration to the
structures. Softwood species take a shorter cycle or span of time to regrow, thus preventing decline in the
forestry, and at the same time, they cost much lesser than hardwood timber species. Since these local softwood
species can be used and reinforced to produce a glulam material that is as strong as those made of hardwood
species, this proves that the use of these local softwood timber species can be economically and environmentally
feasible in terms of production, lesser cost and carbon footprint emission from import and transportation, and
decline of forestry.

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construction projects in the Philippines Legaspina

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