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Service life prediction of wooden components - Part 3: Approaching a comprehensive test methodology
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20464
This paper is the third in a series on 'service life prediction' of wooden components and should be considered as a discussion paper. The authors tried to analyze the topic with a look from a distance and comment sometimes with a smile on the current controversial discussion about SLP issues. Nevertheless, the viewpoints of different groups, such as natural scientists, engineers, approva...
C Brischke, C R Welzbacher, L Meyer, T Bornemann, P Larsson Brelid, A Pilgård, E Frühwald-Hansson, M Westin, A O Rapp, S Thelandersson, J Jermer


Quantitative design guideline for wood outdoors above ground applications
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20465
This paper describes the background and principles behind an engineering design guideline for wood in outdoor above ground applications, i.e. use class 3 according to EN 335. The guideline has been developed in the European research project WoodExter and can be seen as a first prototype for a quantitative design tool in the area of wood durability. It is based on a defined limit state for onset of...
S Thelandersson, T Isaksson, E Suttie, E Frühwald, T Toratti, G Grüll, H Viitanen, J Jermer


Methods of field data evaluation - time versus reliability
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20466
Field testing of wood and wood-based products is so far the most reliable way to get information on performance with respect to durability and expected service life. However, field trials are extremely time and cost consuming. The main objective of the present study was to investigate possible correlations between early stages of decay, preferably during the first 5 years, and the actual service l...
P Larsson Brelid, C Brischke, A O Rapp, M Hansson, M Westin, J Jermer, A Pilgård


Aesthetic service life of coated and uncoated wooden cladding - influencing factors and modelling
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20470
Mould growth on exterior coated cladding façades is an undesirable element and will often shorten the aesthetical service life. Mould growth on painted surfaces is influenced by type and concentration of film fungicides, the paint formulation and the wood substrate itself, and wooden cladding may experience exponential fungal deterioration caused by variation in the climatic factors, often within...
L Ross Gobakken, O A Høibø


Performances of Douglas fir in real outdoor use conditions
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20472
The European standard EN 350-2 classifies Douglas fir as moderately resistant to fungal decay on the basis of standardized laboratory and field tests. However, the lifespan expectancy of outdoor structures such as cladding, decking and elements of wood construction carpentry may also vary according to environmental conditions (climate, exposure to weathering), maintenance and design. An investigat...
M Kutnik, S Lepetit, S Le Nevé


Above ground testing at tropical test sites, what have we learned?
2011 - IRG/WP 11-20473
Three different above ground test methods have been utilized at a selection of five tropical and sub-tropical test sites with a variety of treated and untreated material. The results show that a multi-site approach to above ground field tests presents the opportunity for exposure to un-predicted biodeterioration hazards, which may be important for developmental products of poorly characterized fu...
A Preston, A Zahora, Y Cabrera, L Jin, C Schauwecker, P Walcheski


Ten Year Field Tests of Borate-Treated Wood Against Subterranean Termites
2011 - IRG/WP 11-30557
In the mid 1990s, Forintek Canada Corp. initiated a study of the termite resistance of borate-treated lumber above ground, protected from rain in Canada, Japan and Hawaii. Predominant termite species at three test were Reticulitermes flavipes in Canada, and Coptotermes formosanus in both Japan and Hawaii. The material included hemlock and amabilis fir lumber treated with disodium octaborate tetrah...
P I Morris, J K Grace, K Tsunoda


The durability of acetylated radiata pine sapwood (Accoya). Results from five years testing
2011 - IRG/WP 11-30560
New Zealand grown radiata pine sapwood was modified using the Accsys PLC acetylation process (Accoya). Following treatment, various test samples were exposed in the Scion Accelerated Field Test facility (Fungus Cellar) and in exterior ground contact field tests. In the Fungus Cellar, performance was compared with that of radiata pine treated with CCA to Hazard Classes H3.2 (0.37% m/m Cu+Cr+As) and...
M Hedley, D Page, J van der Waals, K Nasheri, G Durbin


Standardized Field Trials with Micronized Copper
2011 - IRG/WP 11-30564
In 2008, an extensive review of all available data from standardized tests of micronized copper systems was published and there has been considerable work since then. This paper discusses over 20 field stake trials underway in well-known sites such as Gainesville, FL, Hilo, HI and the Dorman and Saucier sites in MS as well as tests from Australia and New Zealand. In addition, 4 ground proximity ...
C R McIntyre, M H Freeman


Durability of modified wood in UC3 and UC4. Results from lab tests and 5 years testing in 3 fields
2011 - IRG/WP 11-40562
In 2005 an extensive test program including field tests was set up in order to obtain more data on the durability and long term performance of modified wood and semi-durable wood species. One of the main challenges for modified wood is to predict accurate service life time in UC3 (use class 3, above ground) and UC4 (use class 4, in soil or fresh water contact). So far, data from in-service condi...
M Westin, G Alfredsen


Comparative studies on the moisture performance and durability of wooden facades
2012 - IRG/WP 12-20492
Wooden claddings are traditionally used in many parts of the world. Also modern structures are frequently made from timber and timber engineering panel products. However, wood has to compete with other cladding materials and its durability needs to assure sufficient functional and aesthetic service life. Besides many other factors the durability of a wooden facade is dominated by its moisture perf...
T Bornemann, C Brischke, J-M Lück


In-ground variability of decay intensity within a test field
2012 - IRG/WP 12-20496
Timber exposed in the ground faces most severe conditions in terms of exposure to wetting and fungal decay in the terrestrial environment, therefore wood durability tests are often conducted in test fields preferably ensuring the occurrence of all relevant decay organisms. One can also expect differences in decay within an individual field-test site due to localized distribution of certain organis...
C Brischke, S Olberding, L Meyer, T Bornemann, C R Welzbacher


Testing service life for use class 3: accelerated L-joint performance of commodities
2012 - IRG/WP 12-20500
Above ground testing is considered important for the assessment of treated wood intended for use class 3. Laboratory testing of efficacy of biocides as well as of natural durability focussing on such applications has to be linked to performance and service life. An accelerated L-joint test was some 15 years ago developed at the Ghent University to allow worst case assessment under semi-controlled ...
J Van Acker, J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, L De Vetter


Durability of Furfurylated Wood – Results from Laboratory and Field Tests in the Ecobinders project
2012 - IRG/WP 12-40602
Within the EU project Ecobinders, laboratory tests were performed with furfurylated wood produced in semi-industrial scale in the factory of Kebony ASA. Field trials in Horizontal double layer decks and in-ground of transmission poles were also started. Four wood species, Southern yellow pine (SYP), maple, beech and aspen were treated to two treatment levels by using two impregnating liquids with ...
M Westin


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


Effectiveness of CCA-C and CCB preservatives after a 30 years stake test
2012 - IRG/WP 12-30606
The objective of this experiment was to assess the durability of four pine species treated with waterborne preservatives. In order to determinate this, a stake field test, following the IUFRO (International Union of Forestry Research Organizations) recommendations, was installed at Experimental Station of Luiz Antonio (21º 32’ S and 47º 42’ W), State of São Paulo, Brazil. Species under t...
I PJankowsky, E S Lepage, C Salvela, J M Vidal, S Takeshita


The effect on moisture content of water trapped in wood joints
2012 - IRG/WP 12-40613
To predict the service life of a structure, a model where the exposure of a structure is compared to its resistance can be used. Which exposure and resistance parameters that are relevant depend on which materials the structure consist of. This approach, with an exposure and a resistance parameter, is similar to the one used in structural engineering where a load (exposure) is compared to the bear...
M Fredriksson, L Wadsö, P Johansson


An assessment of soft rot in preservative-treated poles in two test sites and two network areas in New South Wales
2013 - IRG/WP 13-10801
This document presents an extended summary of recent investigations into soft rot attack of preservative treated power poles from the re-inspection of samples selected from two field sites and two in-service trials located in New South Wales, Australia. The in-ground sapwood of selected poles was assessed by probing and, after core sampling, by microscopy to determine the severity and extent of s...
W D Gardner, M A Powell, C Kirton


Statistical analysis of durability tests - Part 1: Principles of distribution fitting and application on laboratory tests
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20504
Service life prediction is an important topic in wood research, especially with regard to the Construction Products Regulation (CPR). Both laboratory tests as well as in-service performance testing are therefore essential in combination with proper monitoring and analysis tools. A crucial concept is variability in testing and analysis, especially for a biological material such as wood. The larger ...
I De Windt, J Van den Bulcke, C Brischke, C R Welzbacher, A Gellerich, S Bollmus, M Humar,


A critical view on early indicators for above ground field performance of wood
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20509
Above ground field tests are quite often a balancing act between the provision of realistic test conditions, reliable statistics, and acceptable long test durations. Within this study we therefore reviewed 543 data sets from above ground field tests performed at 36 different test sites in 8 countries in Australia and Europe. The main objective was to investigate possible correlations between early...
C Brischke, L Meyer, G Alfredsen, P-O Flæte, L Francis, M Hansson, P Larsson Brelid, J Jermer


Statistical analysis of durability tests - Part 2: Principles of time-to-failure and application on field test data
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20512
Service life prediction is an important topic in wood research, especially with regard to the Construction Products Regulation (CPR). Both laboratory tests as well as in-service performance testing is therefore essential, in combination with proper monitoring and analysis tools. A crucial concept is variability and the incorporation of variability in tests and analysis. In this paper we focus on t...
J Van den Bulcke, I De Windt, C Brischke, C R Welzbacher, A O Rapp, J Van Acker


Changes of fungicidal, mechanical and sorption properties of wood during above ground outdoor exposure
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20513
The aim of this preliminary study was to investigate differences in mechanical, fungicidal, and sorption properties of four different wood species (sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa), common beach (Fagus sylvatica), Norway spruce (Picea abies), and copper-ethanolamine (CuE) impregnated Norway spruce (Picea abies)) that were exposed in the 3rd use class (CEN, 1992) for periods between 4 and 30 months...
N Thaler, M Humar


Service life evaluation of wood - an engineering approach
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20515
A performance-based service life design format based on climatic exposure on one hand and “biological wood resistance” on the other hand is presented in this paper. Important concepts are the introduction of limit states as well as reliable performance models for the biological processes, by which onset of deterioration can be predicted for arbitrary climate histories. Examples of applications...
S Thelandersson


Testing the performance of timber using 27 different field test methods
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20517
Numerous test methods to determine the durability of timber and timber products have been described in relevant literature. However, only some of these methods have been standardized and thus only very few are regularly used for resistance tests in the field. Since results from extensive comparative field studies have shown differences in moisture performance between different test methods, the ai...
L Meyer, C Brischke, J Rieken


Climatic impacts on the moisture performance of wooden decking and facades
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20518
In outdoor usage wood is exposed to a variety of influences, which reduce its durability against biological deterioration and wetting. Besides many other factors the service life of wooden facades and cladding is dominated by occurring moisture loads on the one hand and their capability to withstand moisture on the other hand. Hence, climatic factors have a direct impact on the material climate an...
T Bornemann, C Brischke, G Alfredsen


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