Natural durability of wood in ground contact - A correlation between field and laboratory tests
IRG/WP 2182
M S Cavalcante, G A C Lopez, R G Montagna, M E S Fosco Mucci
A field test is being carried out to evaluate the natural durability of 20 hardwoods. The resistance to decay and termite attack was evaluated in accelerated laboratory tests. The results of the field test after 6 years and 8 months indicate that there is not necessarily agreement between results from laboratory and field tests. It is pointed out that apart from the artificiality of the laboratory tests, a possible cause of the discrepancies can be the different performance of the same wood species in different test sites.
Keywords: NATURAL DURABILITY; HARDWOODS; ACCELERATED TEST; FIELD TEST; TEST SITES; BRAZIL; DECAY RESISTANCE; TERMITE RESISTANCE; CORRELATION WITH LAB TESTS