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Performance of wood exterior structures above ground in Spain. Performance and durability of a shelter of spruce in a shopping centre after 20 years
2022 - IRG/WP 22-20680
Across Europe is very common to find wood exterior structures mainly build in sawn and glue-laminated wood. Most of these exterior wood structures use softwood wood species such as: fir, spruce, pine or douglas. In Spain exterior wood structures, became more and more popular since nineties, when sawn and glue-laminated wood were utilized for building exterior wood structures in overall Spain. In m...
D Lorenzo, A Lozano, M Alonso, J Fernández-Golfín, M Touza, J Benito


Studies into the effect of soil type and soil layer on the in-ground decay of European beech
2022 - IRG/WP 22-20681
In this study, European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) specimens were exposed to three different soil types; Podsol (Podzol), Braunerde (Cambisol), and Pararendzina (Regosol), in adapted terrestrial microcosm (TMC) tests according to CEN/TS 15083-2 (2005). Soils were sampled (250 mm deep) from field sites and separated into their constituent layers to deliver three TMC setups; mineral soil layer only ...
B N Marais, S Kovacs, M Jansen, C Brischke


Using satellite-retrieved soil moisture data to model the decay risk of in-ground timber
2022 - IRG/WP 22-20689
Satellite-derived soil moisture data from the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) was extracted for a 9 x 9 km point grid over Europe. The data was then used as input to a dose-response wood decay model based on terrestrial microcosm (TMC) tests. The resulting hazard map plotted dose as an indicator of in-ground wood decay based on differences in annual temperature and soil moisture characteristic...
P B van Niekerk, M Schönauer, B N Marais, C Brischke


Post-layup protection of mass timber elements in above ground protected exposures: 2-year results
2022 - IRG/WP 22-30766
Mass timber has seen increased use as a building material for low and mid-rise construction in recent decades. The durability of mass timber elements has not been fully examined and the effects of wood destroying organisms on this these materials merits attention. The effectiveness of currently labeled soil termiticides and passively applied biocides at post-construction or as remedial agents need...
M E Mankowski, T G Shelton, G T Kirker, J J Morrell


Above-Ground Termite Resistance of Naturally Durable Species in Ontario and Mississippi
2022 - IRG/WP 22-30767
A collaborative above-ground protected termite field test was initiated by FPInnovations and the USDA Forest Service at sites in Ontario and Mississippi. The aims of the experiment were to compare the rate of attack in protected, above-ground exposures by the subterranean termite species, Reticulitermes flavipes, between northern (Ontario) and southern (Mississippi) test sites and to generate perf...
R Stirling, M Mankowski


Effects of Borax and Boric Acid as Fire Retardants on the Resistance of Pterygota macrocarpa Wood to Fire Tests
2022 - IRG/WP 22-30770
The combustible nature of wood as a building material, when exposed to hazards of fire underscores the reason for fire retardant treatments. Pterygota macrocarpa wood is commonly used by builders in Nigeria for roof and other structural applications. Therefore, this study was carried out to assess the effect of Borax and Boric acid on the fire-retardant properties of P. macrocarpa wood. Wood sampl...
J M Owoyemi, O Apogbona, T O Akinwamide


Field tests of different tropical wood species in sea water
2022 - IRG/WP 22-30773
A number of tropical timbers have been tested according to EN 275 at Kristineberg Marine Research Station in Sweden since 1999. Most of these tests have started during the last 5-8 years. Wood species included have been Lophira alata (Azobé/Ekki), Minquartia guianensis (Manwood/Acaria), Chlorocardium rodiei (Greenheart), Cyclodiscus gabonensis (Okan/Denya), Shorea spp. (Bankirai), Dicorynia guia...
M Westin, P Larsson Brelid


Durability of fast- and slow-grown Douglas fir in above ground exposures in Australia
2023 - IRG/WP 23-11009
Natural durability is a key property for untreated timber used outdoors and exposed to the weather. The natural durability of fast- and slow-grown Douglas fir heartwood was compared in an above-ground L-joint field test near Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The L-joint test provides conditions that are favourable to decay. Fast-grown (regrowth) Douglas fir had ≤ 10 growth rings per 50 mm, while ...
L P Francis


Natural durability of 9 tropical species suitable for round wood timber building: fungi and termites laboratory screening tests
2023 - IRG/WP 23-11013
In numerous tropical forest species, wood properties are poorly described and wood is under-valorized. Especially very few is known about small diameter trees although they may be used, directly as round wood, in construction timber building. A selection of abundant species was done and characterization tests were performed to assess their usability as building material. The aim of this work was t...
M Leroy, K Candelier, J Damay, J Bossu, R Lehnebach, M-F Thevenon, J Beauchene, B Clair


Mini-stakes – an alternative test method for EN 252?
2023 - IRG/WP 23-20691
Market approval of wood treatment products requires knowledge and prove of long-term durability. Efficiency of wood treatment with a specific product is evaluated based on variety of tests, including penetration evaluation, leaching studies as well as decay tests. EN 252 standard test is a core method for wood durability evaluation in a ground contact, both for commercial product approval and scie...
R Digaitis, P Larsson Brelid, N Terziev, M Klamer, A W Christof, J Stenaek, N Morsing


Field durability testing of wood above ground - Part 1: 15 years’ experience with the Bundle method
2023 - IRG/WP 23-20695
A ‘jack of all trades’ method for above-ground wood durability testing has been sought for decades, but until now no method has found its way into standardization. The method of choice shall be applicable for untreated and treated wood – ideally also for wood composites. It shall be reproducible, objective, fast, easy, and inexpensive. Finally, it shall provide high predictive power. This s...
C Brischke, G Alfredsen, L Emmerich, M Humar, L Meyer-Veltrup


Field durability testing of wood above ground - Part 2: The full guideline of the Bundle method
2023 - IRG/WP 23-20696
To determine the biological durability of wood above ground, numerous approaches for test methods have been pursued and tried out in the field in the past. So far, no method has managed to find its way into a European standard. During the last 15 years, experience with the Bundle method has been gained. As described in Part 1 of this paper, the method is recommended as a suitable tool for determin...
C Brischke, G Alfredsen, L Emmerich, M Humar, L Meyer-Veltrup


A six-year ground proximity trial of TRU-CORE treatments at Innisfail, Queensland
2023 - IRG/WP 23-30775
This article describes an H3 (above ground outdoor) ground proximity field trial that compares the performance against decay fungi of TRU-CORE (also known as the Buffered Amine Oxide Enhancement System) Copper Quat (CQ) with CCA and commodity Alkaline Copper Quat (commodity-CQ) treatments, all in Pinus radiata. The retentions achieved reflected commercial practice, where higher mean retentions are...
L Cookson


Challenges in managing very long-term field tests
2023 - IRG/WP 23-30779
Field testing of wood preservatives has been on-going in Petawawa, Ontario, Canada since at least 1937. Many of the treated roundwood posts from these early experiments are still in test, and include preservatives still used today, including creosote, copper naphthenate, pentachlorophenol and CCA. Performance data from selected experiments more than 50 years old are reported and we discuss some of...
R Stirling, D Wong


Establishing the minimum effective penetration of wood preservatives in the refractory heartwood of E. nitens
2023 - IRG/WP 23-30780
Conventional pressure treatment of many Australian hardwoods results in little to no penetration of heartwood and a non-uniform envelope treatment of <5 mm surrounding a mostly untreated core. This is a major issue for many of the low durability plantation hardwood timbers that are grown in Tasmania, which contain high percentages of heartwood. Long term studies on softwoods such as spruce decking...
J R Vargas, J J Morrell, L Yermán, K C Wood


Long-term field performance of a carbon-based preservative in ground contact test conditions
2023 - IRG/WP 23-30781
Carbon-based preservatives have demonstrated reasonable long-term field performance in above ground testing. This study examines the performance of a carbon-based preservative formulation containing quaternary ammonium compounds and tebuconazole as a treatment for three softwood species exposed in ground contact at two sites in Canada. The treatment was associated with improved decay resistance an...
C Wilson, J Zhang, R Stirling


Field performance of MCA-treated wood in ground contact
2023 - IRG/WP 23-30782
Micronized Copper Azole (MCA) was evaluated for its ability to resist biodegradation at two Canadian test sites using Pacific silver fir and white spruce stakes, and lodgepole pine and red pine roundwood posts. After 12 years of exposure the treated stakes exhibited low to moderate levels of decay while the untreated controls had failed. When stakes were moved to an active termite site, the untrea...
C Wilson, J Zhang, R Stirling


Above Ground Proximity Decay Field Trial of Modified ACQ-A, Wolman® CA-B and Wolman® CA-C in Taiwan
2023 - IRG/WP 23-30793
An above ground proximity decay field trial was established at Chiayi county, Taiwan in July 2016. The purpose of this study was to generate local field performance data for Taiwan for Slash Pine treated with Wolman® CA-B, Wolman® CA-C and a modified ACQ-A product at AWPA UC3B actives retention. After 6 years of field trial, the efficacy of the wood preservative in preventing decay fungi and ter...
J-Y Gan


Adhesion and performance of exterior wood coatings on chemically and thermally modified wood – Results from 5.5 years outdoor exposure
2023 - IRG/WP 23-40964
Non-durable softwood and hardwood species were treated with the water-soluble cyclic N-methylol compounds 1,3-dimethylol-4,5-dihydroxyethyleneurea (DMDHEU) and methylated DMDHEU. One half of the modified specimens were coated with a waterborne acrylic coating system prior a natural weathering for 5.5 years according to EN 927-3 (2020). By frequent evaluations, the impact of chemical modifications ...
L Emmerich, H Militz


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


Wood above ground project – Results and future plans
2024 - IRG/WP 24-11041
In 2000, the Danish Technological Institute (DTI) initiated an extensive study to investigate the natural durability of wood. The study involved exposing wood in various orientations to assess its performance. A total of 35 wood material types were exposed at DTI test site in Taastrup, Denmark. Moisture content (MC) was measured through weighing for the initial five years, decay was assessed follo...
A W Christof, R Digaitis, P Fynholm, J Stenbaek, N Morsing, B Lindegaard


Exposure tests on railroad ties treated with DOT
2024 - IRG/WP 24-20705
Keruing railroad ties were treated with disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (DOT) to retentions of 0.7 to 1.7% boric acid equivalent (BAE) and selected borate treated ties were subsequently over treated with creosote/diesel fuel mixture. The treated ties were exposed in a simulated railway track test bed in Malaysia. The leaching of borate was measured over 5 years. BAE in the ties after 5 years of e...
L Arthur, J-W Kim


Barriers of polyglycol/borate treated wood prevent termite attack to untreated wood above them in 10-year field tests
2024 - IRG/WP 24-20709
As a pioneer in wood protection and borate research Terry Amburgey, a lifetime member of the IRG, had many projects where borates were used in subsequently commercially very successful applications. This paper is one of the initial research projects that lead to polyglycol borates being used as a standalone treatment to protect against termites in new homes which has now been well proven over the ...
K W Ragon, J D Lloyd, T L Amburgey


Effectivity of zinc borate in medium density fiberboard (MDF) for ground proximity testing
2024 - IRG/WP 24-20723
Medium-density fiberboard (MDF) is one of the most used and versatile wood composites. Most of its use has been focused on interior applications. Adhesives such as p-MDI (polymeric methyl diphenyl diisocyanate) provide MDF with a better performance against moisture, but resistance against decay is also required for outdoor use. A mix of wood fibers, p-MDI, and 0.75%-1.5% of ZB was made to produce ...
S M Vega Gutierrez, T Olivadoti


Evaluation of vacuum borate treated spruce or pine CLT in an above ground protected test in southern Mississippi
2024 - IRG/WP 24-41001
Cross laminated timber (CLT) has become a popular wood composite in large building applications that were previously limited to concrete and steel. To extend service and prevent biological attack, chemical protectants are often applied to wood. Cross laminated timber panels are not typically treated, in part due to a lack of data on efficient and effective methods for treating large panels. Ther...
M E Mankowski, A Taylor, G T Kirker


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