New challenges to the durability of wood building materials have arisen in the U.S. The Formosan subterranean termite (Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki) now infests sizable portions of the U.S. south and their range is extending. Heat treatments offer a unique opportunity for wood-based composites because many of the process techniques already employ various thermal applications and could be easily modified to design-in durability enhancements if specific benefits were understood. Information on resistance of oil-heat-treated wood against Formosan subterranean termites, however, was not currently available which provided impetus for this study. Samples of Scots pine sapwood (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce sapwood (Picea abies L.) treated with hot rape seed oil were tested for their resistance to FST attack. Scots pine with a combination of hot oil treatment then vacuum pressure treated with hot oil was found to show promise in resistance to FST attack.

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