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Wood was used for letterforms and illustrations dating back to the first known Chinese wood block print dating from 868. The forerunner of the block print in China was the wooden stamp. The image on these stamps was most often that of the Buddha, and was quite small. Provided with handles to facilitate their use, they were not unlike the modern rubber-stamps of today.

The use of wood in printing as a material for making type had been made for hundreds of years before the 19th century.With the expansion of the commercial printing industry in America in the first years of the 19th century, it was inevitable that someone would perfect a process for cheaply producing the large letters so in demand for broadsides. Wood was the logical material because of it's lightness, availability, and known printing qualities.



It printed so well that Hamilton made up a few samples and sent them to nearby printers. After receiving his second order he quit his job at the chair factory and he began the J. E. Hamilton Hollywood Type Company.

Wood used in the manufacture of wood type included apple, boxwood, cherry, holly, mahogany, maple and pine and dogwood. Cherry and apple were limited because of the small size in diameter and pine was too soft for long runs.

 

Wood chips are commonly used as a feedstock in the biomass industry—but what processes must waste wood undergo before it is suitable for use? How is contaminated wood treated to meet standards and obey regulations? Biomass Magazine investigates the old and new processes some companies are using to clean and recycle waste wood.

Having realized it or not, Germany made a colossal discovery when the country first attempted to convert wood into ethanol more than 100 years ago. As it turned out, the production of 18 gallons of ethanol per ton of wood was a stepping stone toward greater things.



As Germany strove to develop a more efficient industrial method of wood-to-ethanol production, the process found its way to the United States during World War I. Although a lull in lumber production hindered the development of the technology, a small but significant amount of research continued.

What was acceptable decades ago, though, is no longer. Concerns have risen regarding the use of wood for fuel—primarily over the environmental effects of removing too many trees—and more pertaining to this day and age, the releasing of toxins from burning or processing contaminated wood. These types of treated wood often contain plastics, nails and other metals that are problematic for landfills because of low density, large volumes and extremely slow decomposition rates. As massive landfills are being filled up and closed, interest has developed in how more of this waste can be utilized. Although most are aware of the benefits and the ways plastic, aluminum and paper are recycled, little is known about the less commonly considered recyclable—waste wood. 

The most common form of biomass is wood. For thousands of years people have burned wood for heating and cooking. Wood was the main source of energy in the U.S. and the rest of the world until the mid-1800s. Biomass continues to be a major source of energy in much of the developing world. In the United States wood and waste (bark, sawdust, wood chips, and wood scrap) provide only about 2 percent of the energy we use today.

About 84 percent of the wood and wood waste fuel used in the United States is consumed by the industry, electric power producers, and commercial businesses.  The rest, mainly wood, is used in homes for heating and cooking.

Many manufacturing plants in the wood and paper products industry use wood waste to produce their own steam and electricity. This saves these companies money because they don't have to dispose of their waste products and they don't have to buy as much electricity. The photograph to the right is of biomass fuel, probably wood chips, being stored and dried for later use in a boiler.