Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Equilibrium Moisture Content of Common Fine Fuels in Southeastern Forests

Informally Refereed

Abstract

Nine different kinds of forest litter found in ground fuel complexes of southeastern forests were subjected to step-wise changes in relative humidity to determine their equilibrium moisture content (EMC) at different levels of relative humidity.

The adsorption and desorption EMC curves for these fuels exhibited the typical hysteresis loop. At any given relative humidity, hardwood leaves usually had the highest EMC's, pine needles were somewhat lower, and grasses and loblolly pine wood had the lowest EMC's.

Citation

Blackmarr, W.H. 1971. Equilibrium Moisture Content of Common Fine Fuels in Southeastern Forests. Res. Pap. SE-74. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southeastern Forest Experiment Station. 8 p.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/2430