IRG Documents Database and Compendium


Search and Download IRG Documents:



Between and , sort by


Displaying your search results

Your search resulted in 64 documents. Displaying 25 entries per page.


Sequestration of copper ions by the extracellular mucilaginous material (ECMM) of two wood rotting basidiomycetes
2004 - IRG/WP 04-10533
The radial growth rate of colonies originating from either whole or ECMM-free inocula of Coriolus versicolor was investigated. The presence of ECMM allowed colonies to maintain higher growth rates than those form ECMM-free inocula up to 2 mM CuSO4 in the medium. The ECMM of C. versicolor and G. trabeum was able to reduce the diffusion of copper ions in solution. The ‘raw’ ECMM of both fungi ha...
D Vesentini, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy


The long-term performance of boron treated joinery in service - A case study
2000 - IRG/WP 00-20208
Joinery treated with borates 23 years ago and in service in residential flats was surveyed and analysed for boron content. The levels of boron still present were sufficient to prevent decay. None of the windows surveyed showed any decay despite the fact that moisture and sapwood contents were conducive to decay....
D J Dickinson, R J Murphy


The effect of treatment method on CCA efficacy in Corsican pine
1992 - IRG/WP 92-3723
As part of a study into the influence of application method on preservative efficacy Corsican pine (Pinus nigra) samples (50 x 50 x 400 mm³) were treated with a CCA formulation using Bethel, Steam/Bethel or Lowry processes. Full penetration of the preservative at a gross level was confirmed using a copper disclosing reagent. The preservative was allowed to fix and then samples were converted into...
P R Newman, R J Murphy


Preservative-treated wood as a component in the recovered wood stream in Europe – A quantitative and qualitative review
2004 - IRG/WP 04-50218
Wood preservatives have been used for the protection of timber products in the European market in appreciable quantities for about 100 years. Between the 1960s up to the present day this usage has been particularly noticeable. The aim of this paper is to present quantitative and qualitative data on the volumes of preservative treated wood placed on the market in the UK and Sweden and to evaluate t...
R J Murphy, P Mc Quillan, J Jermer, R-D Peek


Wood in concrete. Summary of discussion at IRG 14, Surfers Paradise, Australia
1984 - IRG/WP 3264
The performance of untreated and preservative treated wood when placed in direct contact with concrete was considered in a discussion session at IRG 14. While published reports in this area are scarce, research is in progress internationally and a variety of practices are currently available to minimize any additional hazard posed by contact with concrete. This report summarizes the points raised ...
R J Murphy


Volatile borates in the treatment of wood and wood based panel products against subterranean termites
1995 - IRG/WP 95-30094
Blocks of pine solid wood, oriented strand board and plywood were treated with trimethyl borate by vapour treatment. It was meant to obtain either a full impregnation of the specimens or a shell treatment of the outer three millimetres. The efficacy of the treatments against subterranean termites (Reticulitermes lucifugus) was evaluated using an European Standard method....
L Nunes, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy


Report of the meetings of the Refractory Timbers Sub-group, Rotorua, New Zealand, 15 & 17 May 1990
1990 - IRG/WP 3637
R J Murphy


The effect of storage or simulated internal use on the durability of wood based panels to decay fungi
1997 - IRG/WP 97-20106
Wood based panels such as particleboard and medium density fibreboard are experiencing a steady increase in use, in areas from structural to decorative applications. Understanding the "natural" durability of these panel products against basidiomycete fungal decay is therefore of great importance. Various methods have been proposed or are under development to test the durability/susceptibility of v...
S F Curling, R J Murphy, J K Carey


Washboard effect: A surface deformation of spruce resulting from vacuum-pressure impregnation with water-borne preservatives
1987 - IRG/WP 3450
The washboard effect has been observed in sawn spruce after both commercial and laboratory based preservative treatments and is of increasing economic importance. The effect is defined as a specific phenomenon at the wood surface. It is distinct from internal collapse in the wood, but it may occur in association with internal collapse damage. Experimental investigations on the causes of washboardi...
H Willeitner, R J Murphy


Report of the meeting of the refractory timbers sub-group, Lappeenranta, Finland on 25 May 1989
1989 - IRG/WP 3561
The first meeting of this sub-group took place on Thursday 25 May and considered the following agenda: 1) Papers presented to the meeting "Performance of treated spruce in Canadian field test sites" by J.P.Hösli and E.E.Doyle, IRG/WP/3506 and "Performance of CCA treated spruce and pine in unsterilized soil" by A.J.Nurmi. 2) Future work areas for the sub-group 3) Membership of the sub-group 4) Cir...
R J Murphy


Ancillary properties of vapor boron-treated composites
2001 - IRG/WP 01-40210
This paper discusses the water absorption, thickness swelling, and internal bond strength of North American composites treated using a vapor boron treatment process. For oriented strandboard, high boron loadings led to lower internal bond strength and lower thickness swelling. Water absorption results were variable but no deleterious effect of treatment was noted. For medium density fiberboard, th...
W A Jones, H M Barnes, R J Murphy


The use of image analysis to quantify soft rot decay
1992 - IRG/WP 92-2410
Image analysis techniques can provide quantitative information from visual images. As part of a wider interest in decay assessment methods we have investigated the application of image analysis techniques for quantifying soft rot decay by Chaetomium globosum in transverse sections of birch wood and bamboo. A method for reducing contamination of the section (and image) by the fungal hyphae and of s...
P J Wickens, R J Murphy


End grain sealants for wood preservation studies
1985 - IRG/WP 3341
The results of tests with possible end grain sealants for wood preservation studies are reported. The epoxy resins used gave satisfactory performance on wet or dry Sitka spruce and have been used with success for diffusion treatment studies....
R J Murphy, N A Summers


Vapour boron treatment of wood based panels: Further studies on mechanical properties
1993 - IRG/WP 93-30028
Samples of medium density fibreboard, chipboard and oriented strandboard were treated to two retentions of boric acid by vapour phase methods. The results of short term mechanical tests on this material were discussed by Hashim et al. (1992). The present paper discusses results with long term studies on bending and impact resistance with panel types. Long term tests of impact resistance showed no ...
R Hashim, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson, J Dinwoodie


Mapping soft rot decay distribution using image analysis
1993 - IRG/WP 93-20011
Image analysis has been shown to be a useful technique for the assessment of soft rot decay caused by Chaetomium globosum in birch and bamboo (Wickens and Murphy, 1992). The technique can permit assessment of decay in individual or small groups of cells and this has been used to undertake soft rot decay mapping in thin sections of bamboo. Assessments were made of the extent of soft rot decay with ...
P J Wickens, R J Murphy, G F M Watts


Role of cell wall structure in soft rot decay of bamboo
1995 - IRG/WP 95-10133
Models of soft rot hyphal penetration of bamboo cell walls are proposed. Soft rot hyphae show an interesting capability of penetrating the bamboo cell wall in different forms; typical longitudinal penetrating hyphae and tangentially orientated penetrating hyphae. The second form of penetration was found to be different from that normally associated with wood cell walls. The differences can be attr...
O Sulaiman, R J Murphy


The performance of CCA treatment in bamboo against decay fungi
1993 - IRG/WP 93-30027
Samples of culm wall material from young (< 6 month age) and mature (> 3 years age) culms of the bamboo, Phyllostachys virideglaucescens were treated to equivalent% w/w retentions of a CCA preservative. After fixation and leaching the treated samples were exposed to decay by Chaetomium globosum FPRL S70K, Coriolus versicolor FPRL 28A and Coniophora puteana FPRL 11E. Thin section samples of u...
O Sulaiman, R J Murphy


Vapour boron treatment of wood based panels: Mechanism for effect upon impact resistance
1994 - IRG/WP 94-40036
Samples of medium density fibreboard, chipboard and oriented strandboard (OSB) were treated to two retentions of boric acid by a vapour phase treatment. The results of a range of mechanical tests were reported by Hashim et al. (1992, 1993) in which a small reduction in impact resistance was observed. Several investigations were carried out to study how and where this loss in impact resistance occu...
R Hashim, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson, J Dinwoodie


The influence of gaseous oxygen concentration on fungal growth rates, biomass production and wood decay
1998 - IRG/WP 98-10283
The effects of air and several levels of oxygen balanced with nitrogen (% oxygen (v/v) nitrogen to 100%) on growth rates, biomass production and wood decay were investigated. The best technique for measuring daily growth rates in anaerobic jars was found to be by using 40 mm petri dishes which were attached to the walls of the jars. At the end of the test period the same petri dishes were also use...
S M Kazemi, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy


Treatment of wood-based panel products with volatile borate
1990 - IRG/WP 3616
The paper presents recent developments in the use of volatile borate esters for the preservative treatment of wood based board materials. Several advances on previous reports are discussed. In laboratory studies, treatment times of approximately ten minutes at 20°C on boards at equilibrium moisture content provided full penetration and retentions of 1% wt/wt boric acid. Biological tests have been...
P Turner, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson


SEM investigation of the production of extracellular mucilaginous material (ECM) by some wood inhabiting and wood decay fungi when grown in wood
1997 - IRG/WP 97-10193
Previous reports have illustrated the involvement of extracellular mucilage (ECM) in wood decay by Basidiomycetes. Its production is investigated in a range of stain, mould and soft rot fungi in Corsican pine, Scots pine and European beech. Fungi examined were: Chaetomium globosum, Ceratocystis coerulescens, Trichoderma harzianum, Ophiostoma piceae, Mucor sp. and Penicillium. sp. The samples were ...
A R Abu, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy


Life-cycle assessement of treated wood: A view from the roa
1996 - IRG/WP 96-50078
Life Cycle Assessement (LCA) is being used increasingly as a tool to structure information on the environmental characteristics of material and processes. This paper is based on the experience gained from our LCA studies on treated wood products over the last 4 years. The comprehensive and logical examination af the information available on treated timber provided by LCA has allowed identification...
W Hillier, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson, J N B Bell


Environmental risk assessment of treated timber in service: The Environment Focus Group approach
2000 - IRG/WP 00-50162
In the context of the Biocidal Products Directive (98/8/EC), and of the OECD work on wood preservatives, the Environment Focus Group (EFG), comprising 8 institutes and the European Wood Preservative Manufacturers Group, has been working on the environmental risk assessment of treated timber in service. A literature review of emissions from treated timber has revealed that very little existing data...
G Deroubaix, G Labat, I Le Bayon, S Legay, P Marchal, C Yrieix, E Melcher, R-D Peek, S De Geyter, J Van Acker, W J Homan, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy, E D Suttie, A J Nurmi, A-C Ritschkoff, D Rudolph, I Stephan, D Aston, E F Baines, J B Simonin


Bending & tensile properties of vapor boron-treated composites
2002 - IRG/WP 02-40228
North American composites including laminated veneer lumber, oriented strandboard, and medium density fiberboard were treated by vapor boron technology and subsequently tested in static bending. Tensile properties were also determined for the two composite boards. The study was designed as 3 x 2 factorial with three treatment levels and two mill locations for each composite type. In general, mil...
H M Barnes, R J Murphy, B K Via


The probable mechanism of action of boric acid and borates as wood preservatives
1990 - IRG/WP 1450
The tetrahydroxyborate ion [B(OH)4-] acts by complexation with poly-ols and probably attacks decay fungi through extracellular substrate sequestration; intracellular substrate sequestration; enzyme inhibition; and change in membrane function. Work was carried out to investigate this further and to try to explain certain phenomena observed in the area of boron preservation. The effect of Na borate ...
J D Lloyd, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy


Next Page