News

Online course on Wood Mechanics starts 24.2.2025

Published: 4.2.2025

The course explores the fundamental principles of wood mechanics and the mechanical behaviour of wood and wood-based products - fully online.

Photo showing four parallel wood tensile testing set-ups across the grain

CHEM-E2127 Applied Mechanics of Wood Materials (5 cr) online course is organized for the first time in spring 2025. You may follow the course independently during IV period 24.2. – 4.4.2025. The course includes short videos, texts, exercises and online exams. The course starts with an online introduction 24.2.2025 at 12:15. Register to the course by 3.3.2025:

Course registration in Sisu

The course is also available for anyone through FITech - for free:

Course registration for learners outside Aalto

Understanding the complex nature of wood as a material is crucial for creating high-quality wooden products.

Steven Collins, Post doctoral researcher and Course creator

The course is designed primarily for student in the Aalto School of Chemical engineering, however, it is open to anyone wishing to specialize in the materials science of wood. This course will also be of interest to students of architecture, civil engineering, materials science & engineering and related disciplines, who have an interest in the possibilities offered by wood.

This course covers the basic principles of wood mechanics and the use of wood and wood-based products from the perspective of mechanical behavior. A fundamental overview of deformable bodies and their response under various load types is presented and linked to experimental methods for the determination of mechanical properties. Methods for statistical analysis and prediction modelling of material properties are covered together with application and design considerations for (engineered) wood products. Through this course, students will also appreciate the complex nature of wood and learn how to analyse the mechanical properties for design and application purposes.

There are no obligatory pre-requisites, however, the knowledge provided in the course CHEM-E2225 Wood material science will be useful.

More practical information about the course will be updated in MyCourses:

Course information in MyCourses

Drawing of wood sample testing directions: tension, compression, shearing and bending. — This course covers wood material behaviour under different loading directions and explains how the anatomical features of wood are related to its mechanical properties. (Illustration by Niilo Lehtonen))

To support learning the course includes several short videos, such as presented below. Even more videos can be found from this Youtube-channel:

Aalto University - Wood Science

This course can be selected as a part of Bioproducts Engineering Master's program, or Aalto Wood minor, but is also available for anyone to take. Find out about other Wood science courses and the related programs from the link below:

Wood science teaching