This study concerns the chemical modification of wood with different ratios of tannin and furfuryl alcohol (FA) in the presence of maleic acid as catalyst. Tannins were used not only as cross-linking agents, but also as co-monomers to improve wood durability, while reducing the amount of FA used. Different aqueous formulations were prepared containing decreasing amount of FA (from 45.45% to 0%) and at the same time increasing amount of tannin (from 0% to 45.45%) in the presence of 4.54% of maleic acid. After treatment of beech wood samples with the different formulations, resistance of treatments to leaching and effect of the treatments on wood decay durability, wood bulking and wood thermal stability were investigated. The results showed that partial substitution of FA with condensed tannin lead to more or less similar results to those obtained with furfuryl alcohol alone, while total substitution of furfuryl alcohol do not permit to obtain a treatment resistant to leaching and decay. Thermal analysis shows that treatments with tannin or furfuryl alcohol alone or mixture of both chemicals improve thermal resistance of treated wood compared to untreated wood.

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