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Okan (Cylicodiscus gabunensis )
Overview
The heartwood is yellow brown and becomes red brown with air. The sapwood is clearly demarcated. The grain is interlocked and the texture is medium. It has an unpleasant odour when green.
The blunting effect is fairly high and peeling and slicing is not recommended or without interest. Requires power. It is sometimes difficult to obtain a good finish because of highly interlocked grain. Tendency to tear on quartersawn. Nailing is good but pre-boring is necessary. Gluing is correct for interior only. It dries slowly and kiln drying must be handled carefully.
Okan is very durable to fungi and is durable to dry wood borers; sapwood demarcated (risk limited to sapwood). Due to its high specific gravity and hardness, this species naturally covers the biological hazard class 5 (end-uses in marine environment or in brackish water).
Okan can be used for several applications such as:
Interior: e.g. flooring, sculpture, industrial or heavy flooring
Exterior: e.g. bridges, posts, sleepers, heavy carpentry, vehicle or container flooring
Substitute for Azobe (Lophira alata) and Greenheart (Ocotea rodiaei).
| Species | Okan (*Cylicodiscus gabunensis ) |
| Origin | Africa |
| Grade | AIC |
| Thickness | 18mm to 300mm |
| Width | 40mm to 300mm |
Length | 4m to 8m |
| Drying | KD, AD |
Prominent Uses |  |
Description & Distribution
The heartwood of Okan is yellow to golden brown with a more or less light to dark olive green hue, which becomes reddish brown under the influence of sunlight. It sometimes has a deep coppery glow. The broad growth ring boundaries are clearly recognizable on the end due to the dark colour. The sapwood is light pinkish and 50-75 mm wide with a clear colour difference between heartwood and sapwood.
The distribution area of the tropical species okan extends from West Africa (Ivory Coast, Ghana) to Central Africa (Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Central African Republic, Congo, DRC).
Physical description
Crushing Strength: 82MPa (+/- 12)
Specific Gravity (at 12% MC): 0.91 g/cm3 (+/- 0.10)
Stability: Moderately stable to poorly stable
Static bending strength: 134MPa (+/- 23)
Durability and resistance
Dry Wood Borers: Class D - Durable
Fungi: Class 3 - Moderately durable
Termites: Class M - Moderately duarable
Treatability: Class 3 - Poorly permeable
Typical Use
● Hydraulic works (seawater)
● Sleepers
● Heavy carpentry
● Sculpture
● Bridges (Parts in contact with water or ground)
● Flooring
● Poles
● Industrial or heavy flooring
● Vehicle or container flooring
● Turned goods
● Bridges (Parts not in contact with water or ground)
● Decking
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