DIFFERENTIATING HARD FROM SOFT WOODS USING FOURIER-TRANSFORM INFRARED AND FOURIER-TRANSFORM RAMAN-SPECTROSCOPY

The Fourier transform Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectra of six soft- and six hardwood are presented in this paper. In contrast to conventional Raman spectroscopy using visible excitation, the use of a near-infrared laser induced far less fluorescence, and this enabled high quality spectra to be obtained. It is shown that it is possible to differentiate between the two types of wood using both techniques, and the reasons for these differences are discussed.