Coconut Lumber: An assessment of old and new approaches and methods of using coconut wood

Abstract

There is a shortage of locally produced building material and as a consequence, Hawaiʻi relies heavily on imported products. Import heavy societies face a continuous increase in shipping costs and the bill is passed on to the consumer. This is one of the major reasons Hawaiʻi is frequently labeled as one of the most expensive locations in the U.S. not only to build but also to purchase a home. A locally available alternative to depending on imported timber for construction is coconut wood a building material that has been used by tropical civilizations for hundreds of years. Despite the fact that the coconut tree is lauded by many tropical civilizations as the tree of life by virtue of its abundance in resource yet, coconut wood has not been developed as a source of mainstream building material possibly due to a lack of serious study and application. Recent advances in wood technology using laminated timber offer an opportunity to build in ways previously unattainable. Techniques applied in Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) and Nailed Laminated Timber (NLT) has been developed and accepted as methods that enhance lesser grade lumber through nailing and lamination. These processes produce a structurally sound material that has taken wood construction to new heights with the current tallest mass timber building reaching 18 stories. Recent design development of a pneumatic nail gun called Lignoloc that expels beech wood nails instead of metal provides an opportunity to consider nailing as a low technology construction method in humid climates where metal nails are subject to corrosion and other problems. As an answer to sustainable design Lignoloc is a potential game-changer in the mass timber industry. Once heavily used by tropical civilizations for shelter and seagoing transportation, coconut wood is a material that we can return to as a solution to many issues associated with sustainable design and limited local building resources. Through research and testing the purpose of this project will investigate if the synthesis of coconut wood and nail laminated timber methods can be a viable source of locally produced sustainable building material.