When treated wood is placed in contact with soil, complicated mass transfer and chemical reactions occur which causes the preservative components to leach from the wood. There are several factors that are known to affect the amount of chemical leached from wood. These are properties of the preservative and carrier, preservative retention, degree of fixation, exposure time, grain orientation, surface area of the product, wood species, and site factors. With regard to site factors, the chemical and physical properties of soil play an important role in the depletion of biocides from treated wood. The effect of soil properties on the leaching of wood preservatives has only been studied to a limited degree but appears to be a major factor in the performance of treated wood. In this study the effect of five soils with widely different physical and chemical properties on the leaching of chromated copper arsenate (CCA-C), pentachlorophenol (Penta) and didecyldimethylammonium chloride (DDAC) from southern pine was evaluated.

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