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Biological assessment of bio-based phase change materials in wood for construction applications
2022 - IRG/WP 22-40935
Solid wood can serve multi-functionality for energy savings in buildings. The study reveals the results of bio-deterioration and degradation of solid Scots pine wood used to incorporate single or multicomponent fatty acid mixtures as bio-based phase change materials (BPCMs). The sapwood samples were impregnated with capric acid (CA), methyl palmitate (MP), lauryl alcohol (LA) and a mixture of coco...
S Palanti, A Temiz, G Köse Demirel, G Hekimoğlu, A Sari, M Nazari, J Gao, M Jebrane, T Schnabel, N Terziev


Long service life or cascading? The environmental impact of maintenance of wood-based materials for building envelope and their recycling options
2018 - IRG/WP 18-50336
A major restraint in choosing bio-based materials (i.e. wood-based) for external use, is the lack of confidence that architects, designers and customers have toward these materials. In particular, the limit state of bio-based materials, which defines the frequency of maintenance operations, might be reached earlier for wood than for other materials (i.e. concrete). On the other hand, resource and ...
M Petrillo, J Sandak, P Grossi, A Kutnar, A


Applicability of wood durability testing methods to bio-based building materials
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20561
It is well known that organic materials may be susceptible to attack from a range of fungal organisms and any bio-based material used in locations where there is the possibility of microbiological activity must be expected to be able to withstand or prevent such attack. There are a wide range of test methods and standards in place to test susceptibility although most of these test individual compo...
S F Curling, B K Stefanowski, E Mansour, G A Ormondroyd


Performance of bio-based building materials – viewpoints from the first year of COST Action FP1303
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20572
Maintaining and expanding the market potential for bio-based building products in indoor and outdoor construction uses remains a key activity for industries in the forestry and biotechnological sector, particularly in Europe. Whilst there are ongoing activities within IRG for collecting and populating a database on performance on wood, the performance data for many other (i.e. non-wood) "environme...
D Jones


Modelling the performance of bio-based building materials
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20582
The ‘bio-based economy’ represents a growing area of development globally and covers a wide range of building materials including wood and wood-based products. A ‘bio-based’ material is intentionally made from substances derived from living (or once-living) organisms. In this context it means that the materials and products are made from renewable resources, with the criteria that a renewa...
C Brischke


Fabrication and characterization of MicroPCMs filled wood-plastic composites: Effects of polyethylene glycol on melamine–formaldehyde shell material
2016 - IRG/WP 16-40728
Microencapsulated phase change materials (MicroPCMs) containing dodecanol were fabricated using melamine-formaldehyde (MF) or polyethylene glycol 200 modified melamine-formaldehyde (PMF) resin as the shell materials by in situ polymerization. Wood flour/high-density polyethylene (WF/HDPE) composites with MF shell MicroPCMs (MF-MicroPCMs) or PMF shell MicroPCMs (PMF-MicroPCMs) were prepared, respec...
Xi Guo, Jinzhen Cao


Assessing the nutrient value of bio-based materials in relation to early fungal growth
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20631
Bio-based materials are gaining importance in the building industry, as the focus on sustainability and life-cycle-assessment has increased dramatically over the last decade. Wood and wood-engineered products as well as insulation materials made from flax, hemp, etc. are hence increasingly used. These materials originate from renewable resources and are often biodegradable, which can cause problem...
L De Ligne, J Van den Bulcke, J Baetens, B De Baets, J Van Acker


Performance of bio-based building materials – durability and moisture dynamics
2020 - IRG/WP 20-20666
When exposed to conditions favourable for decay, bio-based building materials can be susceptible to degradation. Their ability to withstand deterioration over time (performance) depends on the intrinsic or enhanced durability of the material as well as its wetting and drying behaviour. The effect of fungicidal components in wood is known since long. Other material characteristics, such as the mate...
L De Ligne, J Caes, S Omar, J Van den Bulcke, J M Baetens, B De Baets, J Van Acker


Evaluation of different wood by-products for sustainable building biomaterial production using fungal mycelium
2022 - IRG/WP 22-50373
As human population increases, the demand for new innovative, sustainable, and low impact construction materials also grows. Mycelium-based composites have shown to be an excellent alternative for traditional products ranging from low-density objects to semi-structural applications. They also present the advantage of using the waste streams from other productive processes as feedstock, enabling th...
C Charpentier-Alfaro, M Poggerini, S Palanti, G Della Rocca, D Pellegrini, A Crisci


Enhanced durability of bio-based materials for green building
2023 - IRG/WP 23-50382
Wood protection technologies provide tools to enhance the durability of bio-based materials for green building. Both wood and related bio-based material are regarded as eminent for green building. It allows to underpin several of the United Nations sustainable development goals and is regarded critical for the Green Deal objectives of the EU. Nevertheless, to enhance the potential it needs to be b...
J Van Acker, L De Ligne, J Vand den Bulcke


Contribution to the testing of wood based board material
1982 - IRG/WP 2176
R G Lea


Work program of CEN/TC 38 (April 1993). Durability of wood and wood-based products
1993 - IRG/WP 93-20012
R Hüe


Decay resistance of high performance biocomposites based on chemically modified fibres
1998 - IRG/WP 98-40120
Different partners within the framework of a European research project produced high performance biocomposites aiming at the utilisation of board materials as durable products both in dimensional and biological degrading circumstances. This paper summarises test data, which indicate the potential of board materials produced with modified fibre material. The chemical modifications applied cover a r...
V Rijckaert, J Van Acker, M Stevens


Vapour boron treatment of wood based panels: Further studies on mechanical properties
1993 - IRG/WP 93-30028
Samples of medium density fibreboard, chipboard and oriented strandboard were treated to two retentions of boric acid by vapour phase methods. The results of short term mechanical tests on this material were discussed by Hashim et al. (1992). The present paper discusses results with long term studies on bending and impact resistance with panel types. Long term tests of impact resistance showed no ...
R Hashim, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson, J Dinwoodie


Treatment of wood-based panel products with volatile borate
1990 - IRG/WP 3616
The paper presents recent developments in the use of volatile borate esters for the preservative treatment of wood based board materials. Several advances on previous reports are discussed. In laboratory studies, treatment times of approximately ten minutes at 20°C on boards at equilibrium moisture content provided full penetration and retentions of 1% wt/wt boric acid. Biological tests have been...
P Turner, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson


Effect of vapour boron treatment on mechanical properties of wood based board materials
1992 - IRG/WP 92-3727
The mechanical properties of Medium density fibre board, Chipboard and Oriented strand board were investigated after treatment to two retention levels of boric acid applied as a vapour phase system. A range of mechanical properties were investigated. The vapour boron treatment does not have any significant effect on most of the mechanical properties of the boards. The exception is a reduction in i...
R Hashim, D J Dickinson, R J Murphy, J Dinwoodie


The effect of alternative pre-conditioning procedures on the durability of wood based board materials to decay fungi
1997 - IRG/WP 97-20105
In the biological testing of wood based board materials it has been shown that exposure of boards in a closed vessel system may lead to inaccurate results due to the build up of volatile substances that inhibit the test fungi. It is thought that this is a transitory effect of freshly manufactured boards. In the European standard for testing fungal durability of board materials which is currently u...
S F Curling, R J Murphy, J K Carey


Some fundamental thoughts on the prediction of field performance from lab-testing based on comparison of lab and field test results of some copper-free materials
2003 - IRG/WP 03-20269
In the paper results from lab testing (ENV 807 and EN 113) are compared with field results (EN 252) of differently treated wood. Depending on the type of the organic biocide containing material and depending on type of soil and type of decay differences were found in suitability of the lab methods to predict field performance. The attempt is made to interpret the found differences. Furthermore it ...
A O Rapp, U Augusta


A field test on susceptibility of wood-based board materials to moulds
1989 - IRG/WP 3545
A field test on susceptibility of wood-based board materials to mould growth was carried out under practical, but severe, service-conditions. A total of 19 commercially available composite boards were investigated. It was found that all board materials tested were not completely immune to mould attack. Test results revealed that among the three main categories of wood-based boards involved, partic...
Qiao Wang, B Henningsson


Preliminary investigation on the natural durability of Guayule (Parthenium argentatum)-based wood products
2000 - IRG/WP 00-40154
Conventional preservatives used to protect wood from insect and microbial damages are presently of major concern to human health and the environment. Finding alternative and economical preservatives has not been successful. Previous studies have shown that the resinous material extracted from the guayule plant (Parthenium argentatum, Gray) has both insect- and microbial-resistant properties. Unfor...
F S Nakayama, P Chow, D S Bajwa, J A Youngquist, J H Muehl, A M Krzysik


Eco-Friendly Composites from Bagasse and Soy-based Resin
2009 - IRG/WP 09-40462
In this study, bagasse and soy-based resin were used for producing composite materials. The objective of this study was evaluation of some physical and mechanical properties of boards made of various ratios (100:0, 60:40, 40:60 and 0:100) of bagasse to wood fiber mixtures (wt: wt) with addition of Soy/PF resin at three levels (4, 8 and 10%) and 1.5% wax. All properties were tested according to AST...
G Rassam, B Jamnani


Methods for Studying Penetration Depth of Wood Protection Products
2010 - IRG/WP 10-20432
EN 152 is an accepted standard in Europe for measuring how deep a wood protection product penetrates into the surface of treated pine wood. The method has provided consumers with a wide assortment of products that meet the specifications outlined in the standard. Because the test takes 8 or more months to carry out, artificial ageing procedures have evolved in order to standardize and speed up the...
K Hansen, L Sites, D D Nicholas


Mould growth on wood-based materials – a comparative study
2010 - IRG/WP 10-20455
Ten different wood-based materials - preservative-treated wood, fire retardant-treated wood, modified wood, WPCs and untreated references of pine sapwood and spruce - were tested for mould growth according to SP method 2899 during 42 days at 90% RH and 22°C. Even though the results must be interpreted carefully, they indicate significant differences in mould resistance between the materials tes...
P Johansson, J Jermer


Extruded wood plastic composites based on ACQ and MCQ-treated wood materials
2010 - IRG/WP 10-40495
This paper deals with wood plastic composites manufactured using ACQ and MCQ-treated wood fibers recovered from a wood treatment plant. The goal was to investigate the effect of coupling treatments on the properties of manufactured wood plastic composites (WPCs) through injection molding and to manufacture co-extruded WPC with treated wood fibers. The result demonstrated sound mechanical propertie...
Qinglin Wu, Fei Yao, K Ragon, J Curole, M Voitier, T Shupe


Mould growth on wood-based materials – a simulated in-service study
2012 - IRG/WP 12-20503
Ten different wood-based materials including preservative-treated wood, fire retardant-treated wood, modified wood, WPCs and untreated references of pine sapwood and spruce were placed in three different environments (an attic and two crawl spaces) for a period of 26 months. Mould growth was analysed at five to seven month intervals in an effort to map the growth development. The relative humidit...
G Bok, P Johansson, J Jermer


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