Re: Does wood have moving molecules?

Hi Jill,

What an intriguing question. Let's start with wood: what is it, in terms of molecules?

Wikipedia defines wood as "a hard, fibrous tissue found in many plants". In a living plant wood has two main functions. It provides structural support for the plant and it transports water, through channels that are described as secondary xylem.

In terms of molecules, wood is a rather complex substance. It has two major components: (1) fibres of cellulose, a polysaccharide made from glucose and (2) lignin, a very complex organic polymer synthesised from many smaller molecules including phenylalanine, an aromatic amino acid. To learn more, I recommend starting from the Wikipedia pages for cellulose and lignin (which are quite good introductory sources), then follow the external links for more details.

Does wood have moving molecules? Yes it does - molecules move in all substances. The motion depends on the nature of the substance (solid, liquid or gas) at a particular temperature and pressure. Wood is solid and the molecules are strongly cross-linked to each other so at room temperature and normal pressure, they do not move very much. However, there is some degree of motion (thermal vibration), dependent on the temperature.