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Foundation piles: analysis of beech wood decay in service life conditions
2016 - IRG/WP 16-10858
Wood piles foundation system was largely used over decades. Thus, numerous buildings over the world are based on this constructive system. In the context of reduction of CO2 emissions in the building field of constructions, substitution of concrete by wood as material for foundation piles seems to be a promising alternative. However, fluctuation of the water table level in soil may promote fungal ...
Q Kleindienst, A Besserer, M-L Antoine, C Perrin, J-F Bocquet, L Bléron


Identification of the key factors influencing development of the blue stain fungi
2016 - IRG/WP 16-10872
Service life of wood is more and more frequently affected by aesthetic requirements than functional ones. In order to elucidate various aspects of service life, model house with façade elements made of 22 materials was built on the field test site at Department of Wood Science and Technology in Ljubljana. Colour and fungal disfigurement is among other parameters monitored on this house. In parall...
D Kržišnik, B Lesar, N Thaler, M Humar


Global survey on durability variation – on the effect of the reference species
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20573
Climate change due to anthropogenic emissions is the largest environmental challenge of our time. Forest-based value chains play an important role in reducing the accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere. Maximizing the use of wood to tackle climate change requires improved understanding of the service life of timber products. This information can best be obtained from field testing and while there i...
R Stirling, G Alfredsen, C Brischke, I De Windt, L P Francis, E Frühwald Hansson, M Humar, J Jermer, M Klamer, M Kutnik, P Laks, I Le Bayon, S Metsä-Kortelainen, L Meyer-Veltrup, P I Morris, J Norton, T Singh, J Van Acker, J Van den Bulcke, T M Venås, H Viitanen, A H H Wong


CCA Treated Wood, Will It Last 100 Years?
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20575
Copper, chrome and arsenate (CCA) treated wood has a very successful history of use in New Zealand, for at least 60 years. In many parts of the world, CCA has been used for timber treatment since the mid-1930s. In this report, data are presented on the performance of CCA treated pine stakes and poles. Results from ground contact durability tests at Scion and other overseas test performance data su...
T Singh, D Page


On the effect of climate and exposure conditions on durability indicators and their potential for service life prediction of wood-based products
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20576
In order to encourage increased use of wood, different user groups need to be better informed regarding the variation in performance between different wood materials and the effect of different use classes. It is also important to provide good empirical data on the service life of wood products as input to for example life cycle assessment studies. In the current study the effect of temperature an...
G Alfredsen, C Brischke, P-O Flæte, M Humar, L Meyer-Veltrup


Moisture induced risk and fungal development in various field test set-ups in and above ground
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20577
A high number of studies on the decay performance of wood in outdoor exposure have been conducted in the past. However, no testing methodology for wooden components exposed above ground reflecting the variety of different loads has been established so far. Many test protocols were modified in different ways throughout the years and results were often published in an encoded or incomplete way. This...
L Meyer-Veltrup, C Brischke


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


Expert versus multi-sensor evaluation of wood samples after short term weathering
2016 - IRG/WP 16-20587
Understanding the influence of weathering factors and the material degradation mechanisms are fundamental for modelling the weathering process of wood. The goal of this work was to investigate the combined effect of time and exposure on the physical-chemical mechanisms of wood weathering. Four exposure directions (North, South, East and West) were investigated. Experimental tests were performed fo...
A Sandak, J Sandak, I Burud, L Ross Gobakken, M Noël


Evaluation of advanced tannin-boron preservative in unsterile soil-bed tests
2016 - IRG/WP 16-30693
In Europe, boron compounds are facing restrictions, and due to their natural solubility into water, the only way to keep using them for wood protection is to fix them into the wood, at very low level (Obanda et al. 2008). In the meantime, the idea of protecting wood with natural preservatives has been back into favour (Lotz and Hollaway 1988, Nakayama et al. 2001, Singh and Singh 2012). Tannin a ...
Jinbo Hu, Yiqiang Wu, Shanshan Chang, Guangming Yuan, G Tondi, M-F Thévenon


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


Properties of Wood Plastic Composites Made of Recycled HDPE and Remediated Wood Flour from CCA/CCB Treated Wood Removed from Service
2016 - IRG/WP 16-40747
Chromated copper arsenate (CCA) and copper, chromium and boron (CCB) have been widely used in pressure treated wood as a heavy duty preservative to protect wood against insects and fungi for more than 60 years. Although many attempts have been done to solve the problems related to out-service treated wood, the problem still remains. Only a few studies were done to utilize the out-of service treate...
E D Gezer, S Akbaş, M Tufan, A Temiz


Encapsulation of poles to prevent moisture uptake – a laboratory test
2016 - IRG/WP 16-40753
Premature failure of utility poles due to decay in soil contact is the main reason for early removal of utility poles, a measure that implies extra costs for utilities. Remedial treatments and barriers are common methods to prolong the service life of utility poles. The first part of this paper gives an overview of mode of action and commercial application of barrier systems as described in the li...
K-C Mahnert, U Hundhausen


Estimation of wood degradation determined by visual inspection, mechanical testing and DNA characterisation – report after 3 years of exposure
2016 - IRG/WP 16-30700
The influence of two separate treatments, thermal modification and alkaline copper quaternary (ACQ, Silvanolin©) treatment, on fungal decay, visual disfigurement, deterioration in mechanical properties and fungal community structure was assessed on Norway spruce (Picea abies) and compared with the performance of two naturally more resistant tree species native to North America: Douglas fir (Pseud...
N Thaler, T Martinović, M Bajc, D Finžgar, H Kraigher, A Sinha, J J Morrell, M Humar


10 year Report on COST E37 Round Robin Tests – Comparison of results from laboratory and field tests
2017 - IRG/WP 17-30718
A round robin involving 15 European participants was set up in 2006. The round robin consisted of both a field test according to the double layer test method and a laboratory test with two different preconditioning methods. The laboratory test results were reported in an earlier IRG paper (IRG/WP13-20535) but are included also in this paper in order to facilitate the comparison with the field test...
M Westin, E Conti, J Creemers, P-O Flæte, A Gellerich, I Irbe, M Klamer, E Melcher, R Moeller, L Nunes, S Palanti, L Reinprecht, E Suttie, H Viitanen


Comparative studies on the durability of English oak (Quercus robur L.) under in-service, field and laboratory conditions
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10881
The durability of many wood species varies due to differences in extractive content, anatomical features, growth conditions, and not at least in dependence of the respective exposure conditions either under test or in real life applications. And so does the durability of English oak (Quercus robur L.), which has recently been considered in the revised European standard EN 350 (2016) and is now cla...
C Brischke, L Meyer-Veltrup, A Soetbeer, M Höpken, E Melcher, J Trautner


Oak maturation casks at the Rodenbach brewery, an industrial heritage of the Flemish Community requiring protective measures
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10898
Brewery Rodenbach has world-renowned cask halls with close to 300 oak casks, some of these big maturation casks are 150 years old and this is protected as part of the industrial heritage of the Flemish Community. Since some of these maturation casks or “foeders” were the last decades no longer fully in use some parameters of their physical condition might have increased incidence of fungal dec...
J Van Acker, I De Windt, R Ghequire


Design and performance prediction of timber structures based on a factorization approach
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20603
Service life of timber structures in outdoor conditions is predominantly affected by the climatic conditions in terms of moisture and temperature over time. On the one hand, the two parameters moisture content and temperature determine the exposure-induced dosage that can lead to fungal infestation and subsequent decay. On the other hand, the material resistance of wood stands in opposition to exp...
L Meyer-Veltrup, C Brischke


Modelling of moisture content in timber bridge details
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20613
The design of details is an important aspect in durability design of timber bridges. Details are often considered the weakest points in bridges due to their tendency to trap and accumulate moisture and thus facilitate decay. When designing maintenance plans and inspection intervals, it is important to know how design choices will come to influence the service life. Moreover, service life and wood ...
J Niklewski, C Brischke, E Frühwald Hansson, L Meyer-Veltrup


Monitoring Diversity and Colonization Patterns of Wood-Inhabiting Fungi Using Field Stake Tests
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20614
Advances in molecular identification of microbial communities enabling rapid microorganism determination have allowed ecological data to be increasingly incorporated into standardized wood performance tests. Combining standard field tests with molecular methods to study wood-associated microflora can help to better understand fungal colonization and decay processes of wood in service. The potentia...
P Torres-Andrade, J Cappellazzi, J J Morrell


Comparative Durability of Timber Bridges in the USA
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20615
As engineers begin to utilize life-cycle-cost design approaches for timber bridges, there is a necessity for more reliable data about their durability and expected service life. This paper summarizes a comprehensive effort to assess the current condition of more than one hundred timber highway bridge superstructures throughout the United States. This national study was jointly administered by the ...
J P Wacker, B K Brashaw


Prediction of service life – does aesthetic matter?
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20618
Building structures should be designed in order to satisfy requirements regarding safety, serviceability, durability and aesthetics, assuring proper structure performance along the entire service life. For that reason it is essential to understand overall deterioration mechanism at levels of element, component, façade and entire building. This work focuses specifically on the façade aesthetical ...
A Sandak, J Sandak


Influence of Weathering on Moisture Performance of Wood
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20619
Water performance of wood is besides the inherent durability the most important factor that influences on the performance of wood in outdoor, above ground applications. Therefore it is of significant importance to optimize the methods that are able to predict the moisture behaviour of wood in outdoor applications. In order to elucidate this questions, samples were prepared of oak (Quercus), sweet ...
M Žlahtič-Zupanc, B Lesar, N Thaler, M Humar


Service Life Forecasting and Planning – Why, and Concepts to do it
2017 - IRG/WP 17-20625
The importance of the building and construction sector in society cannot be overestimated. It is globally the major industry sector, a main contributor to gross domestic products, a dominant employer, and the main consumer of material resources and energy. The environmental impact of constructing, running and demolishing the built environment is huge. The products of construction are normally long...
C Sjöström


Activity of Two Strobilurin Fungicides Against Three Species of Decay Fungi in Agar Plate Tests
2017 - IRG/WP 17-30704
The objective of this study was to examine the toxicity of strobilurin fungicides against wood decay fungi in order to assess their potential to act as a co-biocide for copper-based wood protection. Two strobilurin fungicides, Heritage (50% azoxystrobin active ingredient) and Insignia (20% pyraclostrobin active ingredients), and copper sulfate pentahydrate were tested against one white rot fungus...
J D Tang, T Ciaramitaro, M Tomaso-Peterson, S V Diehl


Hybrid green composites manufactured with glass fiber and jute fabric skin by VARTM process: Fungal, mold, and termite resistance tests
2017 - IRG/WP 17-40780
Hybrid green composites are increasingly used in building applications due to the development of new production approaches. Biological performance of such composites is needed when they are employed in extreme conditions. Hybrid composite panels were manufactured by wood furnish, glass fiber, and jute fabric skin by the vacuum assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM). Petri dish test method was fol...
S N Kartal, E Terzi, M Muin, A H Hassanin, T Hamuoda, A Kilic, Z Candan


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