Energy traditional human activity

Wood is one of the oldest renewable resources exploited by human activity in the form of timber, tools, source of energy and of shelter. Wood is a complex natural material whose stmcture represents the very paradigm of a composite assembly, as briefly outlined in Chapter 1, together with general references to the traditional uses of this multifarious vegetable manifestation. Its main components (see Chapter 1) are cellulose (A), hemicelluloses (B) and lignin (C), accompanied by minor contributions of low molecular weight compounds and mineral salts. This book includes several chapters devoted to the utilization of both the major and some of the minor components of wood considered individually as a source of polymers. 

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