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Failure characteristics of thermally modified poplar wood subjected to mechanical tests
2023 - IRG/WP 23-40983
Poplar (Populus spp.) are among the fastest growing timber species and have been widely planted for use in plywood, composites, pallets, furniture components and paper production. However, the low density of the wood limits many structural applications and the wood has little resistance to biodegradation. Thermal modification represents one approach to improving durability by changing the moistur...
E Bari, M Ghorbanian Far, N Moradi, J J Morrell, G Daniel, B Mohebby, R Hosseinpourpia, M Humar


Evaluation of the effectiveness of soaking of high-temperature plywood in low-temperature oil-based wood
2023 - IRG/WP 23-40991
We conducted a preliminary investigation to determine if soaking high-temperature plywood in a low-temperature preservative solution could achieve deeper penetration of the preservative, even in plywood made with refractory wood species such as Japanese larch. Specimens cut from commercial plywood (Japanese larch) were stored at various temperatures before being soaked in the preservative solution...
T Miyauchi, S Isaji, H Shibui, N Furuta, J Miyazaki, H Matusnaga


Do naturally sequestered biocidal metals contribute to the marine borer resistance of turpentine?
2024 - IRG/WP 24-11036
Turpentine wood is renowned for its resistance to attack by molluscan marine borers. This resistance is thought to be due to its high silica content, and possibly the presence of other, as yet unknown, compounds. Silica in turpentine wood is present as particles in rays, but in many plant species silica also occurs in cell walls. We hypothesized that Si is present in cell walls of turpentine, but ...
P D Evans, H Matsunaga, D Feng, M Turner, C Kewish


Intra-species variability of moisture dynamics in wood
2024 - IRG/WP 24-11040
Moisture dynamics of wood and wood-based materials play a major role in wood durability against different decay organisms. Their impact becomes particularly evident when wood is exposed, but not permanently wet. To date, however, this has only been taken into account indirectly and therefore inadequately when testing the durability of wood. While test methods are available, for example to determin...
C Brischke, H Purps, L Emmerich


Enhancing UV resistance and decay resistance of wood by nanoparticle dispersed linseed oil nanoemulsion
2024 - IRG/WP 24-20706
Enhancing increasing demand for eco-friendly and cost-effective wood coatings and preservatives has led to the development of water-borne formulations and use of non-toxic and natural materials such as vegetable oils and waxes. The aim of this study was to improve the UV resistance and decay resistance of wood by nanomaterial dispersed linseed oil emulsions. Highly stable nanoemulsions of linseed ...
R Bansal, R Kumar, K K Pandey


Surface treatment of cross-laminated timber to improve water repellency and UV resistance
2024 - IRG/WP 24-20716
Cross-laminated timber (CLT) has emerged as a revolutionary building material, offering a sustainable alternative to traditional construction methods. By layering and bonding multiple layers of wood at right angles, CLT creates a robust and versatile structural element capable of supporting significant loads while promoting eco-friendliness and design flexibility. However, despite its numerous adv...
M Chen, S Uphill, J Hilsenbeck, A Hughes


Influence of the substitution of phenol with lignin cleavage products in phenol-formaldehyde impregnation resins for wood modification on the fungal decay resistance and impregnation depth
2024 - IRG/WP 24-30805
The impregnation modification of wood with phenol-formaldehyde (PF) resins increases the woods dimensional stability and resistance against fungal decay. However, to decrease the usage of non-renewable resources, the substitution of phenol has been a topic of scientific interest. Lignin is a currently underutilized resource with a chemical structure that contains phenolic units. For adhesive appli...
J Karthäuser, L Tarentino, A Treu, H Militz, G Alfredsen


A novel treatment for increasing UV stabuility of wood based on citric acid and urea
2024 - IRG/WP 24-30811
Wood, a fundamental material in the Built Environment, faces challenges related to durability and weathering, notably UV degradation leading to colour changes. This study explored a novel treatment method utilising citric acid and urea to enhance the UV stability of wood. The reaction between these compounds forms fluorescent species and insoluble nanoparticles upon thermal treatment. Two treatmen...
S Jué, A Scharf, C-F Lin, R Moutou Pitti, D Sandberg, D Jones


Outdoor termite resistance performance of zinc borate (Borogard® ZB) treated parallel strand lumber (PSL) – 15 years field test results
2024 - IRG/WP 24-40999
This report discloses the outdoor termite resistance performance of PSL samples treated with zinc borate at a dosage of 0.85% BAE and 1.72% BAE in Wuxi, China. The outdoor field trial lasted for 15 years and observations were made after 6 months, 3 years, 5 years 1 month, 6 years 6 months and 15 years. The retaining rates of B2O3 and ZnO in the final samples were also tested, and the hypothesis wa...
S Shi, E Laval, K Lung, F Ascherl, R Williams, W Li, X Li


Durability of Malaysian plybamboo to mold
2024 - IRG/WP 24-41014
Durability of 3-layer plybamboo fabricated from two Malaysian bamboo species, Gigantochloa levis (beting) and Gigantochloa scortechinii (semantan) using three different adhesives - urea formaldehyde (UF), melamine urea formaldehyde (MUF) and phenol resorcinal formaldehyde (PRF) was evaluated in this study. Samples were exposed to the mold, Aspergillus brasiliensis for 4-week following the ASTM D44...
S Lipeh, A Mustapha, A S Yusoh, M K A Uyup


Analysis and performance of spruce alternative species and discarded wood for windows production
2024 - IRG/WP 24-50386
Climate change is having a significant impact on European forestry, particularly on the softwood species used for window frames. This study investigates potential replacement tree species for spruce (Picea abies), the predominant material for window frames. We evaluate Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), thermally modified poplar (Populus nigra) and discarded silver...
B Lesar, J Levanič, M Humar, A Treu


The durability and mechanical properties of 40 years old Black locust poles
2024 - IRG/WP 24-11042
This study investigates the durability and mechanical properties of 40-year-old black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) poles harvested from a vineyard in Slovenia. Wood from these poles was compared to recently harvested black locust wood to determine possible reuse options. Visual inspection, hyperspectral imaging, and laboratory tests were conducted to assess decay, density, mechanical properties, ...
M Humar, J Malik, J Levanic, D Krzisnik, E Kerzic, B Lesar


Structural health assessment of wood - A comparison of methods for determining the spatial spread of fungal infestation in beams and rafters
2025 - IRG/WP 25-11051
Wood decay in buildings can cause severe economic losses, require comprehensive refurbishment, and removal of decayed wooden elements from the building. The latter aims at restoring the structural integrity of the component or the entire building through replacement, and at preventing the infestation from spreading further. In practice, components are cut out of the structure to such an extent tha...
C Brischke, N Sommerfeld, E Flohr, A K Mayer, S Bollmus


Enhancing the Fire Resistance of Spruce Wood through Treatment and Additive Application: Small Flame Test Method
2025 - IRG/WP 25-20737
Spruce panels treated by spraying with Burnblock® spray, were tested using “Small flame test method” according to EN ISO 11925-2:2011. The fire retardant product from Burnblock ApS is reported by the Danish company to be bioderived and non-toxic. The results for the untreated planed spruce showed moderate flammability whereas the Burn Block treated panels exhibited exceptional fire resistance...
E S Mujanic, R Hasanagic, E Kerzic, L Fathi, M Humar


Securing Flame Retardancy in Wood: Durability After Artificial and Natural Weathering Test
2025 - IRG/WP 25-20738
The outdoor use of wood is often limited by challenges such as dimensional instability, vulnerability to fungal decay, and high flammability. Traditional flame retardant treatments improve fire resistance but suffer from significant leaching under environmental exposure, reducing their long-term effectiveness. This study introduces an innovative solution by integrating flame retardants with DMDHEU...
M Wu, L Martin, H Militz


A novel anti-fungal wood crack repairing agent based on CQDs/PVA
2025 - IRG/WP 25-20744
Wood is a sustainable material, but its tendency to crack and decay poses a challenge for its applications. In this study, we developed a combination system of nitrogen-doping carbon quantum dots (N-CQDs) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to repair wood cracks. Rather than employing the conventional repairing methods such as filling cracks with sawdust and petroleum based-adhesives, this technique can m...
X Zhao, Z Zhang, Y Peng, W Wang, J Cao


Predicting weather resistance of Recoated Outdoor Wood by Near Infrared Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy
2025 - IRG/WP 25-20757
Wood exposed to the outdoors causes slow degradation. One wood treatment to retain this degradation is paints and stains, and recoating is essential process for these coated wood products to achieve a long service life. We investigated that possibility of using near infrared spectroscopy to estimate repair condition and weather resistance of recoated outdoor wood. The specimens used for recoating ...
M Murai, M Itani, K Isoda


The Impact of Drying Techniques on the Quality of Thermally Modified Wood
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30813
The wood drying technique applied before loading the dry wood into the ThermoWood® kiln may affect its properties. For this purpose, Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) boards were first dried through three drying methods, including radio-frequency/vacuum (RF/V), mild, and moderate conventional drying, and then loaded into a ThermoWood® kiln for thermal modification at 212 °C for 3 hours according to...
M Ghorbanian Far, N Sharifi, A Nikoutadbir, A Tarmian, M Humar


Decay resistance of thermally modified Eucalyptus grandis in closed and open systems
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30815
Thermal modification has been successfully used to improve the durability of Eucalyptus wood from fast-growing forests. Although it is the most common type of modification process, there are some fields for studies on thermally modified wood, particularly about the comparison between processes in closed and open systems. This work aimed to analyse the effect of thermal modification in closed and o...
D C Batista, A C Oliveira Rupf, M Wentzel, C Brischke, H Militz


Novel treatments of solid wood - studies into the use of imidazole and succinimide
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30817
Recent activities have focussed on the use of ionic liquids (ILs) in wood treatments and bioprocessing. Most ILs are based on imidazolium systems, so it was decided to investigate the potential of imidazole as a treatment, along with another heterocyclic compound, namely succinimide. Thus, modification of Scots pine sapwood (Pinus sylvestris L.) with heterocyclic compounds, imidazole and succinimi...
D Jones, A Scharf, H Dernegård, J Oja, S Duarte, J Levanić, M Humar


Enhanced Termite Resistance of Low Durability Fast Growing Teak Wood by Non-Biocide Treatments Based on Chemical and Thermal Modification
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30818
Short rotation teak as a fast-growing tree can be considered as a renewable material resource for the future green economy. However, short rotation teak wood is susceptible to biodeterioration, particularly to termite attack. The objective of this work was to investigate the effect of chemical and thermal treatment on resistance of sapwood, transition wood, and heartwood of short rotation teak aga...
R Martha, K Candelier, M-F Thévenon, B George, I S Rahayu, W Darmawan, P Gérardin


The impact of common fire retardancy salts and minerals on further properties of wood
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30821
Wood has become an increasingly important construction material. To ensure fire safety, fire retardants are widely applied. Recent research focuses on environmentally friendly fire retardants with strong fixation. Phosphate-based salts like diammonium hydrogen phosphate show high fire protection potential but are highly leachable due to their good water solubility. As a newer trend mineralisation ...
T Franke, T Volkmer


Process Development in Continuous Wood Densification and the Influence of Ionic Liquids on Set-Recovery and Mechanical Properties
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30827
The densification of wood significantly enhances its mechanical properties, making low-density species more viable for high-performance applications. However, challenges such as set-recovery (SR) and production speed hinder large-scale adoption. This study investigates continuous surface densification using a custom-built belt press and examines the effect of chemical pre-treatment with ionic liqu...
D Jones, A Scharf, B Neyses, D Sandberg


Enhancing strength, fire and biological resistance of wood through structural and chemical modification
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30831
Wood, a renewable and versatile biopolymer, has been a fundamental material to construct traditional and advanced composites for building construction, furniture, transparent composites, and various other applications. Despite its many advantages, including its aesthetic appeal, workability, and relatively low cost, wood possesses inherent limitations such as susceptibility to biological, flame an...
R Abouzeid, M S Koo, Q Wu


Evaluation of oak bark extracts as bio-based preservative agents in wood protection
2025 - IRG/WP 25-30833
Bark represents a major by-product of the forestry sector and is often referred to low value uses such as combustion for energy, soil mulching or animal bedding. Nevertheless, bark contains a wide array of bioactive constituents, offering considerable potential for transformation into value-added wood protection agents. Developing sustainable wood treatments based on these natural compounds aligns...
R Herrera, A Selmanovic, F Poohphajai, C Peña, A Sandak


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