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Shorter-term biological control of wood decay in pre-seasoning pine roundwood as an alternative to chemical methods
1992 - IRG/WP 92-1555
Previous studies on the long-term control of decay in creosoted transmission poles, using Trichoderma and other antagonistic moulds, have met with limited success. However, it is possible biological control is more suited to control of decay on shorter time scales. An earlier study, focusing on pre-seasoning treatment of transmission poles showed that favourable porosity increases could be brought...
M W Schoeman, D J Dickinson


LCA examination of preservative treated timber products and alternatives; initial results
1995 - IRG/WP 95-50040-04
Co-operative development of an LCA methodology suitable for application to preservative treated products has been carried out, based on scoping assessments of two products, CCA treated fenceposts and creosote treated distribution poles. The general results of these scoping exercices are described, based on the CCA case study. These include the identification of critical stages in the life-cycle on...
W Hillier, R J Murphy, D J Dickinson, J N B Bell


The use of fumigants for controlling decay of wood: a review of their efficacy and safety
1989 - IRG/WP 3525
Volatile agricultural chemicals (fumigants) such as chloropicrin (trichloronitromethane) and sodium n-methyldithiocarbamate have been used in the United States for controlling internal decay of large dimension wood products for over 20 years. This usage has been concentrated in the electric utility industry, but fumigants are increasingly applied to protect bridge timbers, marine piling, and even ...
J J Morrell


Quantification of creosote and fluoride in remedially-treated poles
1997 - IRG/WP 97-40097
Three creosoted transmission poles were put into service in 1961 and they were subsequently remedially-treated with a proprietary fluoride remedial paste formulation in 1981. The poles were removed from service in 1996 and their ground-contact regions were analysed for creosote and fluoride contents. It was found that the poles were undecayed. Creosote retentions decreased down the profiles of the...
B P Hill


Gelatin encapsulated fumigants for wood fumigations: Current research status
1985 - IRG/WP 3336
The fumigants chloropicrin (trichloronitromethane) and methylisothiocyanate (MIT) were encapsulated in gelatin as an alternative to liquid fumigant treatments for control of decay fungi in wooden utility poles. Gelatin-encapsulated MIT was stored for over 2 years under dry conditions without significant fumigant leakage. Gelatin encapsulated MIT and chloropicrin were released from capsules when pl...
A R Zahora, M E Corden, J J Morrell


A bioassay of remedially treated pole material
1987 - IRG/WP 3453
Stubs prepared from treated and untreated utility poles were installed in a test plot and pressure spade treated at the groundline with one of four preservative greases. At one and three year intervals, core samples were removed from the stubs and the improvement in the preservative efficacy due to the greases was assessed. The bioassay investigation showed that only bis(tributyltin) oxide (TBTO) ...
J N R Ruddick, L Parker


Removing Cu, Cr and As from CCA treated yellow pine by oleic acid
2003 - IRG/WP 03-50202
In this study, CCA treated yellow pine utility poles were cut into three different dimensions and 4 different pH levels (2, 2.5, 3.5 and 5) of Oleic acid was used. The leached wood samples were collected at the end of the 1, 3, 7 and 14 days to determine the remaining Cu, Cr and As concentrations. The concentrations of Cu, Cr and As were determined by X-RF. The effects of pH, dimension and duratio...
E D Gezer, Ü C Yildiz, S Yildiz, E Dizman, A Temiz


Supply of wooden transmission and telephone poles in Tanzania: Problems and possible solutions
1987 - IRG/WP 3424
The eucalypts which have been used widely for utility poles for more than 30 years have dwindled remarkably from traditional supply areas. Consequently, pole-using authorities are considering importing poles from abroad. This alternative is considered unrealistic and costly. The aims of this paper are: - to dispel fears of pole scarcity and to show that an abundant resource of a variety of tree sp...
K K Murira, S A Diwani


Whitewood - An external joinery timber?
1975 - IRG/WP 253
The timber used traditionally for softwood joinery in the UK is redwood (Pinus sylvestris). In the past its ready availability in the desired sizes and quality and its durability in service encouraged little competition. However, the past decade has seen some erosion of this position, particularly through the increased proportion of sapwood in redwood supplies. Since the sapwood is less durable th...
J W W Morgan


The effects of pH on leaching of copper-chrome-arsenate (CCA) from pressure-treated Kenyan-grown Eucalyptus saligna and Acacia mearnsii: Initial findings.
2002 - IRG/WP 02-30298
The effects of pH on leaching of CCA from pressure-treated Kenyan-grown Eucalyptus saligna and Acacia mearnsii were tested under laboratory conditions. Small samples of the two species (100mm x 30mm x 40mm) were smooth sawn from 8-year old trees to represent equal amounts of both sapwood and heartwood, air-dried to 12% moisture content, end-sealed, and pressure-treated at a commercial treatment p...
R Venkatasamy


The effect of kerfing on check formation in treated white spruce (Picea glauca) poles
1981 - IRG/WP 3167
62 white spruce poles, 6 m in length, were cut from full size utility poles commercially pressure treated with preservative. 21 of the poles were treated with pentachlorophenol, while of the remainder, all of which were treated with ammoniacal copper arsenate, 22 were kerfed and 19 were unkerfed. The poles were installed in the Westham Island field test site, near Vancouver, and inspected annually...
J N R Ruddick


Pretreatment decay in poles of Pinus sylvestris
1987 - IRG/WP 1329
Storage damage by blue stain and decay in poles before impregnation has been increasingly observed during recent years and there have been reports that salt-impregnated poles today are of lower quality because of incipient decay being increasingly common. The attacks may have started at the time of cutting and then continued during the period of seasoning at the plant, which could be as long as tw...
H Lundström, M-L Edlund


Borate diffusion from fused borate rods in douglas-fir transmission poles
1994 - IRG/WP 94-30042
Pressure-treated utility poles have given many years of excellent service, but their lifetime is often shortened by internal decay of the untreated heartwood center, particularly in refractory species, such as Douglas-fir. This paper reports the distribution of boron from fused borate rods installed in CCA-treated Douglas-fir transmission poles. The boric acid equivalent was roughly monitored by t...
T L Highley, W Finney, F Green III


Examination of power poles by computerized tomography
1980 - IRG/WP 2142
The technique known as computed axial tomography (CAT or CT) has become widely known because of the success it has achieved in medical imaging and diagnostics. It has now been used to give non-destructive crosssectional pictures of a variety of industrial objects, including wooden power poles, with a spatial resolution of about 1 mm (0.04 in.). It is obvious the benefits that would be derived from...
J A Taylor, I L Morgan, H Ellinger


Relating CCA fixation to leaching of CCA components from treated products
1995 - IRG/WP 95-50045
The relationship between chromium fixation in CCA-C treated wood, as determined by CrVI analysis of solution expressed from treated wood and the leaching of Cu, Cr, As and CrVI in a simulated rain test are evaluated for dimension lumber (2"x6") and pole sections. Leachate concentrations after 2 hour exposure to a misting spray (about 300 mm cumulative rainfall) decrease rapidly with increased degr...
P A Cooper, R MacVicar, Y T Ung


A non-destructive testing technique for wood poles
1987 - IRG/WP 2293
A method has been developed to evaluate the stiffness and condition of a wood pole based on structural dynamics. This paper describes the results of tests performed on nearly 200 wood utility poles across Western Canada. A high correlation exists between the dynamic non-destructive test and direct mechanical tests. The need for an accurate non-destructive testing technique is demonstrated by the f...
W M Murphy, D E Franklin, R A Palylyk


Penetration of oil-borne preservatives in American elm
1975 - IRG/WP 355
Pressure treatment of elm posts and cants by Rueping schedules resulted in erratic penetration. Instead of the expected gradual decrease in retention from surface inward in posts, inner zones frequently contained more preservative than the surface quarter inch. Heartwood was found penetrated when sapwood was not. There were numerous skips in treated zones. The prevalence and possible causes were i...
E A Behr


The control and pretreatment decay in air seasoning Scots and Corsican pine poles in England
1990 - IRG/WP 1451
Previous work clearly showed that air-seasoned, British grown Scots and Corsican pine poles are subject to serious pretreatment decay. In order to control these infections a range of pretreatments are currently being investigated. One series of treatments is designed not only to control decay but also allow the development of mould and stain fungi in order to achieve the desired increases in poros...
D J Dickinson, A R Zahora, A P Dodson


CCA type C depletion of Southern yellow pine utility poles
1995 - IRG/WP 95-50049
Depletion and redistribution of preservative components were evaluated on five CCA-C treated poles in service for over six years in Conley, Georgia. A statistical approach was taken in which retentions below ground were compared to retentions above ground due to a lack of initial data on individual poles. It was hypothesized that the below ground retentions should be lower than the corresponding a...
P D Osborne, R F Fox


Programme d'études sur le pentachlorophénol
1993 - IRG/WP 93-50001-09
In 1989, Hydro-Québec began a study program on pentachlorophenol (PCP), with a view to ensuring safe management of the product at all stages of its utilization. The topics under study include storage of treated poles, behavior of PCP in the environment, soil decontamination, water treatment, characterization and disposal of treated wood waste, and assessment of substitutes. This paper summarizes ...
G Beaulieu, A Bériault, R Chénier, L Houde


Soft rot in heartwood of preservative-treated pole stubs of Eucalyptus cypellocarpa L. Johnson
1983 - IRG/WP 1204
Pole stubs of Eucalyptus cypellocarpa L. Johnson, treated in the sapwood with certain waterborne preservatives and exposed for 21 to 23 years in a dry tropical region were severely soft-rotted in the heartwood, as well as the sapwood. They broke with a brash fracture when stress tested (loaded as a cantilever) in the field. The severe soft rot in the heartwood was not detected by the knife test or...
J E Barnacle, G C Johnson, M A Tighe


Wood preservation in Uruguay
1987 - IRG/WP 3404
The purpose of this paper is a brief description of the current status of wood treatment in Uruguay. The forest resources of the country are summarized, the environment, their economic importance and future potential. The present wood treating facilities are described, together with the chemicals used and the standards generally accepted. Wood treated products used in the Uruguayan market are cite...
G Baillod


Minimisation of the Environmental Impacts of Coatings on Exterior Wood by Optimisation of their Life Spans
2003 - IRG/WP 03-50197
The study has shown that the environmental impacts from coatings on exterior wood are dependent criteria on their life spans. A minimisation of the environmental impacts can be performed with the help of the integrated design model, which is tested in this study. The optimal life spans, found as reference service lives from the exposure tests, statistical evaluation and the assessment of experts w...
L Strömberg


Wood preservation in Italy
1985 - IRG/WP 3354
The report summarizes the history of wood preservation in Italy up to the present time. Information on the Italian climate and the main hazards to timber are dealt with and the amounts of timber grown and imported and exported tabulated. The main commodities treated are poles and sleepers. The amounts of preservative used have been estimated and details listed of the 10 pressure plants in the coun...
A Gambetta, E Orlandi, R Cockcroft


Evaporation and redistribution of creosote in pine poles during storage
1996 - IRG/WP 96-50064
During the work with European standards for pressure treated wood, it has been questioned if the lapse of time between impregnation and chemical analysis of the retention is critical, especially for creosote. "The Norwegian Control Scheme for Preservative Treated Wood" has not discovered any retention problems analysing CCA preservatives in wood. If the lapse of time between impregnation with creo...
F G Evans, B Nossen


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