Parameter estimation of moisture diffusivity in wood by an inverse method

This study focuses on the transfer of bound water and liquid water in wood. The moisture changes and distribution of six wood species (three softwoods and three hardwoods) were investigated in the longitudinal direction exposed to long-term moisture sorption in static environmental conditions. Most species used for the experiment reached an estimated maximum moisture content, which indicated that there might be no significant hysteresis in the capillary pressure curve due to air entrapment. The experimental data for the different samples were found to vary considerably. Using initial values obtained by the Boltzmann transformation, the Levenberg-Marquardt method was used to determine the moisture diffusivity from measured moisture content changes with time and moisture profiles. The validity was ascertained by comparing the numerical results with the corresponding experimental measurements. There was a point of discontinuity and an abrupt change in the slope of the diffusivity function around the fiber saturation point, which might slow the numerical solution process.