IRG Documents Database and Compendium


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Your search resulted in 461 documents. Displaying 25 entries per page.


Biological performance of gypsum products containing borates
2000 - IRG/WP 00-30237
At suitable retentions borates have biostatic properties enabling them to be used for biodeterioration control in wood. They provide protection against decay fungi, mould, and termites, which are known to also attack gypsum products. Currently, many gypsum products contain added borates, which are used to improve physical and processing characteristics. Work examining the effect of borates at cont...
J L Fogel, J D Lloyd


A roadmap for performance-based specification of wooden components based on service life prediction
2007 - IRG/WP 07-20351
The need for an unified and harmonised system for performance classification and specification of wood and wood-based products in Europe emanates from requirements of users and the European Construction Products Directive, CPD. A road to a feasible specification system is outlined. Exposure-related performance prediction was worked out as a key task on the way to product specification. Therefore s...
C Brischke, A O Rapp


A preliminary note on the role of moisture absorption rate in durability assessment
2008 - IRG/WP 08-20383
The rate of moisture uptake was studied in 15 wood species using vermiculite at varying moisture levels as the exposure medium. As might be expected, moisture uptake varied widely among the species studied. While some of the more durable wood species were also resistant to moisture uptake, this was not always true. The results are discussed in relation to performance in under varying environmenta...
J J Morrell, L P Francis


Improving our understanding of moisture and other durability-related properties of wood in building envelope performance prediction
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20468
Building science has become an increasingly important field in recent years with rapid changes in construction methods, building materials and consumer expectations. The field has also been brought to prominence by a few large-scale premature building envelope failures in a few regions across the world. Considerable effort has been put into developing hygrothermal models to simulate heat, air, vap...
Jieying Wang, P Morris


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


Building solid foundations to support market growth of preserved wood in the UK – treatment quality, product approval and the largest national field trial of preservative treated wood in 50 years
2015 - IRG/WP 15-30662
The Wood Protection Association (WPA) has just commissioned Britain’s largest ever durability trial of home grown timber, having contracted Building Research Establishment (BRE) to conduct a long term controlled field trial of sawn and pressure treated British Softwood posts at two sites with differing soil conditions. This large scale Field Trial is the last of an innovative and substantial thr...
E Suttie, G Ewbank


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


The durability of manufactured structural building materials
2016 - IRG/WP 16-40718
The projected market potential for Engineered Wood Products such as CLT (cross laminated timber) is very positive however, potential prolonged rain leakage or moisture exposure during construction and in-service could pose considerable concern for its durability and reputation. This research was conducted to assess the decay resistance of CLT and OSB (oriented strand board) in an accelerated trial...
T Singh, D Page


Hygrothermal performance of ventilated wooden cladding
2016 - IRG/WP 16-40733
The risk for an attack of wooden claddings by decay and discolouring fungi strongly depends on the moisture and temperature conditions in the building envelope. The design of the cladding has a major influence on its hygrothermal performance. In the present study, different wooden ventilated cladding designs were investigated at a test house in Mid-Norway for four years. The objective was to incre...
K Nore, U Hundhausen


Moisture performance of wood determined in laboratory and field trials
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20621
It is widely accepted that wood moisture content (MC) is the key factor when it comes to durability of wooden structures exposed to weathering. The moisture performance of wood and wood-based products has been recognized as key element in wood durability and wood protection. Actually, it should be considered as major component of the material-intrinsic resistance of wood, but never found its way i...
D Kržišnik, N Thaler, B Lesar, M Humar


Simulation and visualization of aesthetic performance of bio-based building skin
2018 - IRG/WP 18-20633
Performance of 120 selected façade materials provided by over 30 industrial and academic partners is under evaluation. The experimental data, acquired during BIO4ever project duration are used for development of the numerical models simulating the material degradation in a function of time and exposure. The weather data calculated according to the ASHRAE 2013 database allows numerical simulation ...
J Sandak, A Sandak, P Grossi, M Petrillo


Durability and climate change - implications for wood building structures
2019 - IRG/WP 19-50361
Sustainable building practices are rooted in the need for reliable information on the long-term performance of building materials; specifically, the expected service-life of building materials, components, and assemblies. This need is ever more evident given the anticipated effects of climate change on the built environment and the many governmental initiatives world-wide focused on ensuring that ...
M Lacasse


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


Microbiological degradation of wooden piles in building foundations
1988 - IRG/WP 1370
White rot, soft rot and bacterial attack have been detected in softwood piles under buildings. In some cases bacteria were found to be the main degradation organisms in the studied piles. The water content of degraded piles was very high. The compression strength was quite low also in the piles deteriorated by bacteria. The density of wood was very variable, and the degree of degradation could not...
L Paajanen, H Viitanen


Proposed method for out-of-ground contact trials of exterior joinery protection systems
1981 - IRG/WP 2157
Methods for testing the efficacy of preservative treatments for exterior joinery are described using the format of a European Standard. Commercially used treatments applied to jointed test units (L-joints) which are then protected by conventional finishes are exposed to normal outdoor hazards out of ground contact. Assessment is made a) by determining eventual failure through decay and b) by destr...
J K Carey, D F Purslow, J G Savory


The restricted distribution of Serpula lacrymans in Australian buildings
1989 - IRG/WP 1382
Temperature data has been gathered over a number of years, not only for flooring regions of various buildings in Melbourne, but also within roof spaces and external to the buildings. Findings are discussed in relation to the distribution of Serpula lacrymans within Australia, its restriction to certain types of building construction and its restriction to flooring regions. The subfloor spaces of b...
J D Thornton


Field performance of wood preservative systems in secondary timber species
1997 - IRG/WP 97-30152
The objective of this ongoing study is to evaluate the performance of new, potential, and standard wood preservative systems in secondary North American timber species. Eleven preservative systems were evaluated in this study - ACQ Type B, Copper Citrate 2: l, CDDC, chlorothalonil/chlorpyrifos, copper-8-quinolinolate, tebuconazole/chlorpyrifos, RH287, propiconazole/chlorpyrifos, copper naphthenate...
P E Laks, K W Gutting, R C De Groot


How to Document the Performance of Super-Critical Treated Wood in above Ground Situations?
2005 - IRG/WP 05-20316
The paper presents practical experiences from the preparation of a new preservative treated wood product for introduction to the market. The product in question is Superwood™, which is treated with organic biocides using CO2 in a supercritical state as a solvent. The question is how to evaluate the performance of a new product such as Superwood™ in order to get an acceptance on the market a...
N Morsing, A H H Wong, F Imsgard, O Henriksen


Performance of treated fence posts after 6 years in five test plots in the State of Sao Paulo - Brazil
1976 - IRG/WP 376
Fence posts treated with creosote, pentachlorophenol and creosote/ pentachlorophenol mixtures showed good performance after 6 years of exposure in five test plots located in the State of Sao Paulo - Brazil. Good results were also achieved with copper sulphate/sodium arsenate and copper sulphate/potassium dichromate mixtures. Fungi and termites were the main destroying agents found attacking the po...
M S Cavalcante


An evaluation method for less termite attack execution on thermal insulation for fundation walls
2002 - IRG/WP 02-20245
According to the results by the real scale Japanese building tests, the termite installation was observed at very little spaces between foundation and insulation. The termite penetration spaces between foundation and insulation on foundation systems in Japanese wooden houses were checked by the way of streaming speed of colored water. Because of difficulty for its execution, the parts of outside a...
K Suzuki, Y Tanaka


Comparison of Different Methods for Assessing the Performance of Preservatives in the BAM Fungus Cellar Test
1998 - IRG/WP 98-20149
The fungus cellar test is a common means to get reliable data on the long term performance of treated wood in soil contact. A constantly high humidity and a suitable of water holding capacity for a range of micro-organisms provide high decay rates in untreated wood and produce intensive microbial pressures on wood treated with biocides. Presently a range of biocides are under test in the BAM fungu...
I Stephan, M Grinda, D Rudolph


Problem of the treatment of dried sawn spruce building timbers with water-borne preservatives. Interim reports for discussion at the 4th Annual Meeting in West Berlin on 27 October 1972
1972 - IRG/WP 311
One of the most difficult technical problems facing the preservation industry is how to improve the treatment of refractory species of timber such as spruce. Its resistance to penetration, even under pressure' precludes its use for more hazardous service situations, and even in less severe conditions a higher level of treatment would be desirable. The importance of this subject led us to ...
W Liese, J W W Morgan, T Hof, R O Ullevålseter


Performance of preservative-treated hardwoods with particular reference to soft rot. Report of condition of specimens installed in Victoria, Australia
1980 - IRG/WP 3155
J Beesley, R McCarthy


Copper naphthenate performance: A new way to look at old data
2000 - IRG/WP 00-30215
Although copper naphthenate has over a 50-year test history, it is still considered as a "new" preservative in the United States when it is used for utility poles. It has also been extensively used in remedial treatments for poles and has considerable retail or over-the-counter sales. The test history includes a number of different tests and a rationale for evaluating this data and comparing the p...
C R McIntyre


In-ground performance of two formulations of chlorothalonil after five years of exposure at three test sites in Australia
1996 - IRG/WP 96-30101
Sapwood specimens of Pinus radiata D. Don and Eucalyptus regnans F. Muell. were each treated to three retentions of each of two preservative formulations (chlorothalonil in oil; chlorothalonil plus chlorpyrifos in oil) and installed in-ground at three field test sites in Australia. Specimens were treated with each formulation to achieve 3.2, 6.4 and 12.8 kg/m³ of chlorothalonil a.i. and 3.2 + 0.2...
J W Creffield, T L Woods, N Chew


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