The higher heating value (HHV) and the immediate, final as well as chemical analyses ofdebarked wood for thirty-eight species from the central-western region of Cuba were studied. A new model to compute the HHV based on the elemental composition for all species and for each of the thirty-eight species was proposed. The proposed model for HHV calculation was compared with other available correlations, finding a better fit for the proposal, with a mean deviation of \(\:\pm\:2\%\) and \(\:\pm\:4\%\) in 83.8% and 95.4% of the available experimental data. The best individual fit was obtained for Spondias mombin, L. with a mean error of \(\:\pm\:2\%\) and \(\:\pm\:4\%\) in 89.6% and 98.3% of the available data, respectively, while the weaker fit was computed for Cordia gerascanthoides, H. B. K. with a mean deviation of \(\:\pm\:2\%\) and \(\:\pm\:4\%\) in 80.7% and 90.2% of the available data, respectively. The results show that the model presented in this work is satisfactory, with statistical tests confirming an \(\:{\:\text{R}}^{2}>0.9\) . In all cases, the agreement of the proposed method is good enough to be considered satisfactory for practical design. Given the lack of equal precedents in the literature, this work is considered a contribution to the field of knowledge for the Caribbean region.
