Your search resulted in 165 documents. Displaying 25 entries per page.
Non-destructive evaluation of wood decay
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20479
Evaluation of wood decay is often prone to subjective assessment. Standard rating scales are based on human perception of decay, often in addition to weight loss measurements. Especially the assessment of graveyard specimens or other long term testing material that has to be monitored regularly on a non-destructive basis, is challenging. In this paper two techniques are presented that can deliver ...
J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, N Defoirdt, J Van Acker
Limited variability in biological durability of thermally modified timber using vacuum based technology
2011 - IRG/WP 11-40567
The SmartHeat® thermal timber treatment is a new technology based on the process parameters being steered very precisely mainly due to the vacuum applied and heating system involved. Timber treated with this technology shows a potential for less variability of biological durability in one batch. Several batch treatments were sampled and assessed on statistical variability of decay resistance agai...
J Van Acker, S Michon, J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, B Van Swaay, M Stevens
Coconut lumber for wood decks (Cocos nucifera L.): decay resistance against Basidiomycetes fungi
2012 - IRG/WP 12-10784
Since a couple of years, manufactured products of coconut wood for outdoor uses like wood decks have been proposed on the European market. These are presented as an alternative for traditional tropical timbers. In the past, coconut wood was neglected and burned for sanitary reasons and lack of interest at industrial scale. Plantation coconut trees at end of production of copra constitute a renewab...
B Jourez, C Verheyen, J Van Acker
Plywood under the scanner: linking moisture dynamics and 3D structure
2012 - IRG/WP 12-20491
Plywood is highly esteemed as a construction material. Yet, the influence of moisture on both strength and durability are important factors. Especially the dynamics of moisture desorption and absorption should be taken into account when assessing the quality of a panel, which is a fact for all panel materials. This paper therefore focuses on the monitoring of the moisture dynamics of plywood subje...
J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, N Defoirdt, J Van Acker
Testing service life for use class 3: accelerated L-joint performance of commodities
2012 - IRG/WP 12-20500
Above ground testing is considered important for the assessment of treated wood intended for use class 3. Laboratory testing of efficacy of biocides as well as of natural durability focussing on such applications has to be linked to performance and service life. An accelerated L-joint test was some 15 years ago developed at the Ghent University to allow worst case assessment under semi-controlled ...
J Van Acker, J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, L De Vetter
Determination of the natural durability of solid wood against wood-destroying fungi - a European round-robin test
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20511
In Europe the durability of wood against wood-destroying basidiomycetes is tested according to CEN/TS 15083-1 (2005). Hitherto existing experience with this standard is quite heterogeneous and results from previous round-robin tests have stayed unreported or have been reported incompletely. In particular the need for natural pre-weathering of the test specimens to allow potential detoxification of...
C Brischke, C R Welzbacher, A Gellerich, S Bollmus, M Humar, K Plaschkies, W Scheiding, G Alfredsen, J Van Acker, I De Windt
Statistical analysis of durability tests - Part 2: Principles of time-to-failure and application on field test data
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20512
Service life prediction is an important topic in wood research, especially with regard to the Construction Products Regulation (CPR). Both laboratory tests as well as in-service performance testing is therefore essential, in combination with proper monitoring and analysis tools. A crucial concept is variability and the incorporation of variability in tests and analysis. In this paper we focus on t...
J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, C Brischke, C R Welzbacher, A O Rapp, J Van Acker
Performance standards for wood in construction – delivering customer service life requirements
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20537
There is increasing need for consideration of performance classification for wood products in construction, as evidenced by the CPR, warranty providers and end user demands for information. This means we need to radically consider how the tests we conduct on wood for durability (especially biological durability) can inform on service life and how they might if possible be translated into a perform...
E Suttie, C Brischke, F Englund, E Heisel, J Jermer, D Lorenzo, M Polášek, S Thelandersson, J Van Acker
Variability in durability of some selected South-American wood species
2014 - IRG/WP 14-10831
Within the scope of sustainable forest management one wants to encourage the proper use of lesser known wood species. Therefore the market has to shift from a demand-driven towards a supply-driven market without loss of wood quality. It is generally known that the durability from pith to bark varies thus, affecting the overall durability of wood species. Consequently, a detailed analysis is necess...
I De Windt, P ’t Hooft, J Van den Bulcke, J Van Acker
Performance classification of wood in construction – drafting a user friendly European standard
2014 - IRG/WP 14-20545
The performance classification for wood products in construction is an extremely important topic in Europe and beyond – warranty providers and end users demand service life and performance information in the face of competition with other materials. The European project PerformWOOD has formalised and drawn together the on-going research to focus on generation of a material resistance factor for ...
E Suttie, C Brischke, L Meyer, J Van Acker, M Kutnik, E Heisel, F Englund, J Jermer, S Thelandersson, M Polášek, D Lorenzo
Moisture dynamics of wood and wood-based products – Results from an inter-laboratory test
2014 - IRG/WP 14-20539
In the frame of the European research project PerformWOOD in close liaison with the CEN task group TG EN 350 of CEN TC 38 WG 21 in total six research institutes teamed up and initiated an inter-lab trial (Round Robin) to investigate the suitability of different test methods to determine the wetting ability of wood. The moisture performance of wood and wood-based products has been recognized as key...
C Brischke, L Meyer, C Hesse, J Van Acker, I De Windt, J Van den Bulcke, E Conti, M Humar, H Viitanen, M Kutnik, L Malassenet
Statistical analysis of 40 years of preservative in-ground stake testing in Australia
2014 - IRG/WP 14-20552
Wood is widely recognized as a valuable material, yet the natural durability of some wood species limits its use for certain outdoor purposes. For decades, a wide range of methods and chemicals have been developed to increase the resistance of wood against degrading microorganisms and termites. Preservative treatment has a long and widespread tradition in wood protection. Proper testing of the eff...
J Van den Bulcke, L J Cookson, I De Windt, W Li, J Van Acker
Critical parameters on moisture dynamics in relation to time of wetness as factor in service life prediction
2014 - IRG/WP 14-20555
The concept of natural durability or enhanced durability based on the presence of active ingredients having an impact on both fungi and insects is not the only parameter steering the material resistance. Complementary resistance to getting wet (wetting ability) and consequently the ease of drying afterwards will lead to a parameter related to the time a piece of wood will remain under such wet con...
J Van Acker, I De Windt, W Li, J Van den Bulcke
Biological durability of natural fibre reinforced composites
2014 - IRG/WP 14-40681
Composite materials reinforced with wood or non-wood natural fibres have the potential to be a lighter and lower-cost alternative construction material. Until better availability and properties and a lower cost price of degradable polymers makes their use more prevalent, the application of natural fibre reinforcements in synthetic polymers is an intermediate step towards products that are complete...
N Defoirdt, I De Windt, J Van den Bulcke, J Van Acker
The potential of 2D NIR imaging for wood protection research
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20566
Investigating wood and wood-based materials using infrared spectroscopy has since long been explored. Recently, image-based systems have been developed that are used in food and pharmaceutical industries for rapid screening. Such hyperspectral cameras are able to collect spatial and spectral information simultaneously, resulting in a volume with a spectral profile for each pixel of the image. We p...
J Van den Bulcke, N Defoirdt, W Li, J Van Acker
Introduction of the COST FP 1303 Cooperative Performance Test
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20567
COST Action FP 1303 “Performance of bio-based building materials” successfully started in October 2013 and an ambitious program was set up for the four year programme. COST Actions provide an excellent opportunity for collaborative research, e.g. in the frame of Round Robin tests. The idea of this respective test was to distribute a fairly simple test set up to as many places in Europe as poss...
M Humar, C Brischke, L Meyer, B Lesar, N Thaler, D Jones, S Bardage, C Belloncle, J Van den Bulcke, J M Abascal, G Alfredsen, D Baisch, B Brunnhuber, G Cofta, E Grodås, E Frühwald Hansson, M Irle, H Kallakas, J Kers, M Klamer, P Larsson Brelid, A B Maider, K C Mahnert, E Melcher, R Möller, M Noël, L Nunes, G A Ormondroyd, S Palanti, N Pfabigan, A Pilgård, A O Rapp, P Schumacher, E Suttie, T Teppand, M Touza, J Van Acker
Non-destructive monitoring of structure and moisture dynamics of plywood exposed outdoors to improve service life prediction and fit-for-purpose design
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20570
Plywood is an important construction material yet prone to water uptake, which can decrease strength and increase decay risk. To predict service life and improve fit-for-purpose design, it is crucial to understand the moisture behavior and structural changes of plywood. In this research, several plywood specimens were exposed outdoors for approximately one year. During this period, the moisture di...
W Li, J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, M Dierick, J Van Acker
Environmental Fate of Micronized Copper
2015 - IRG/WP 15-50310
The environmental fate of wood preservatives is an important aspect to estimate the health and environmental impact. Although biocides from treated wood may be released into the soil, water or air, the latter pathway is frequently neglected in favour of leaching studies. Nonetheless, wood dust is well known to cause a variety of adverse health effects, in particular diseases to the respiratory tra...
C Civardi, L Schlagenhauf, J Benz, C Hirsch, J Van den Bulcke, M Schubert, J Van Acker, P Wick,
Global survey on durability variation – on the effect of the reference species
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20573
Climate change due to anthropogenic emissions is the largest environmental challenge of our time. Forest-based value chains play an important role in reducing the accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere. Maximizing the use of wood to tackle climate change requires improved understanding of the service life of timber products. This information can best be obtained from field testing and while there i...
R Stirling, G Alfredsen, C Brischke, I De Windt, L P Francis, E Frühwald Hansson, M Humar, J Jermer, M Klamer, M Kutnik, P Laks, I Le Bayon, S Metsä-Kortelainen, L Meyer-Veltrup, P I Morris, J Norton, T Singh, J Van Acker, J Van den Bulcke, T M Venås, H Viitanen, A H H Wong
Insight in moisture dynamics of wood treated with organosilicon compounds
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20598
The SILEX project “Improving sustainability of construction materials using innovative Silicon based treatment” is a Life+ project with reference LIFE+11 ENV/BE/1046 and started in April 2013. This project intends to demonstrate that a new class of compounds can be used for wood treatment for an extended service life combined with enhanced new testing methodology. The project aims at demonstra...
J Van Acker, J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, S Colpaert, S De Rocker, S Salvati, J-P Lecomte
Assessing the natural durability for different tropical timber species using the mini-block test
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10886
The Xylarium in the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA, Tervuren, Belgium) contains over 60,000 wood-samples, comprising over 12,000 species. These samples are of great historical and scientific value yet have a random format, which complicates standard testing. The wood-durability against Coniophora puteana and Trametes versicolor was tested for 36 species. Due to the random sample sizes the s...
V Deklerck, I De Windt, N Defoirdt, J Van den Bulcke, H Beeckman, E Espinoza, J Van Acker
Underground timber constructions from the First World War are well preserved after 100 years
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10897
During the Great War or World War I many underground constructions have been built for protection from shelling. They were an important part of the trench warfare as they were used as an area to rest and carry out other activities such as eating. They would usually range in size from smaller constructions that could hold several men to larger entities that could hold thousands of soldiers. In the ...
J Van Acker, I De Windt, K Haneca, H Beeckman, F Claeys, S Vandenbussche, J Vandewalle, N Robeyst, A Willems
Oak maturation casks at the Rodenbach brewery, an industrial heritage of the Flemish Community requiring protective measures
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10898
Brewery Rodenbach has world-renowned cask halls with close to 300 oak casks, some of these big maturation casks are 150 years old and this is protected as part of the industrial heritage of the Flemish Community. Since some of these maturation casks or “foeders” were the last decades no longer fully in use some parameters of their physical condition might have increased incidence of fungal dec...
J Van Acker, I De Windt, R Ghequire
An experimental study of mould growth and wood decay in timber frame walls
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20623
This paper deals with parameters related to the occurrence of mould growth and wood decay in timber frame walls. In a first part, the hygrothermal conditions inside a timber frame wall finished with brick veneer cladding are analysed to get an idea of possible moisture related problems. It is shown that, based on the VTT mould prediction model, there is a mould risk on the interface between the in...
M Vanpachtenbeke, J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, J Langmans, S Roels, J Van Acker
Guidance on the European Biocidal Products Regulation Concerning Efficacy of Wood Preservatives
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20627
In Europe wood preservatives belong to Product Type 8 (PT8) of the Biocidal Products Regulation (BPR, EU n. 528/2012), which regulates the authorisation of biocidal active substances and products in the European market.
The applicant, who aims to obtain authorization to place a product onto the European market, needs to submit data to substantiate the label claims for the intended uses. Label cla...
I Stephan, M Kutnik, E Conti, M Klamer, L Nunes, J Van Acker, R Plarre