IRG Documents Database and Compendium


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Utility pole recycling and disposal in Eastern Canada
1990 - IRG/WP 3587
Increasing public awareness, prompted by environmental groups such as Greenpeace, concerning the use and disposal of treated wood is becoming a serious issue in Canada. Producers and user groups of treated Pentachlorophenol (PCP) utility poles are at the forefront of public, government and media attention. If, as expected, further limitations on the use and disposal of PCP by the public are impose...
S D Henry


Evaluation of a utility pole inspection procedure
1996 - IRG/WP 96-20084
Methods were developed and are currently being utilized to appraise residual strength of utility poles based on visual assessment of increment cores. Strength tests, mycological descriptions and anatomical analyses were performed on eight utility poles taken out of service and one new (never in service) pole. Samples were obtained from increment cores removed from 6 levels in the pole: 2 feet, gro...
S E Anagnost, C J K Wang


Microscopic analysis of southern pine utility pole core segments
1992 - IRG/WP 92-1542
Fifteen macroscopic core descriptive categories were evaluated by microscopic analysis for accuracy in detecting decay and judging decay severity. Five categories were good indicators of decay as decay was detected in 28 of 48 samples. Five categories were possible indicators of early decay as decay was detected in 6 of 40 core segments and an additional 18 contained hyphae. The remaining five cat...
S E Anagnost, C J K Wang, M Wright


Three-dimensional modeling of fumigant distribution in wood poles
1993 - IRG/WP 93-30025
The practice of using fumigants to control internal decay has been widely accepted in the United States and has shown to be effect in control internal decay in transmission poles and other large wood timbers. Mathematical models were developed to simulate the chloropicrin movement in utility poles after treatment. The simulation results indicated that treatment of utility poles, using either tradi...
Jing Liu, B Goodell


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


Field Liners as physical barriers to prevent wooden utility pole decay in soil: An accelerated field simulation trial
2008 - IRG/WP 08-20384
Field Liners (FL’s), plastic sleeves used to protect in-ground wooden poles from fungal and termite damage, have been tested before as physical barriers to prevent contact between soil and wood and to retain wood preservative treatment. These earlier studies concentrated mostly on creosote preserved poles and early generation FL’s which were cumbersome in their application. The newer generatio...
A R Howgrave-Graham, L J Cookson, T Hale


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


Through-boring to improve the performance of low durability Eucalyptus species for utility poles: 10-year field test results of pole stubs exposed in Southeast Queensland
2023 - IRG/WP 23-40972
An impending shortage of naturally durable hardwood electricity pole timbers in Australia has encouraged investigation of alternatives containing less durable, untreatable heartwood. Through-boring or drilling holes perpendicular to the long axis before treatment, has been used successfully on refractory softwood poles in North America and might have application in Australia. The use of through-bo...
J Norton, L P Francis, J J Morrell


Soft rot in CCA-treated utility poles in Sweden
1989 - IRG/WP 1398
Soft rot investigations of CCA-treated utility poles (Pinus sylvestris L.) have been conducted throughout large parts of Sweden during 1974-1985. The investigation included 179 utility poles of the State Power Board which had been used for 10-18 years in the different administrative regions from northern to southern Sweden. In addition, 193 telephone poles from the Östersund area and 218 from the...
H Friis-Hansen, H Lundström


E.R.C. Pole Tester
1982 - IRG/WP 2190
Operating instructions for the ECRC pole-strength tester 120kNm 'PEST'....
G Elcock


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


Cu, Cr and As distribution in soils adjacent to CCA treated utility poles in Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey
2004 - IRG/WP 04-50214
In this study, the main objective was to asses the distribution of Cu, Cr, and As in soils adjacent to CCA treated utility poles in Eastern Blacksea Region of Turkey (Trabzon, Rize and Artvin ) and determine the influence of soil composition. Surface (0-5cm), subsurface soil samples (30-40cm) were collected near CCA-treated utility poles and control soil samples away from CCA-treated utility pole...
E D Gezer, Ü C Yildiz, A Temiz, S Yildiz, E Dizman


Soft rot and bacterial decay in preservative treated eucalypt power transmission poles
1982 - IRG/WP 1155
Bacterial type decay was observed in CCA and PCP treated eucalypt power transmission poles. Detailed observations made with the SEM revealed bacterial colonisation and decay, especially in fibres. Plug samples taken from poles throughout Queensland were examined for preservative retention and presence of soft-rot decay. The severity of decay was different according to location, retention and speci...
L E Leightley


Final draft of a monographic card for Pole Fungus A, L Harmsen, Rigidoporus vitreus (Fr.) Donk according to the 'Model Questionnaire for preparation of monographic cards for wood-destroying fungi'
1978 - IRG/WP 178
L Harmsen


Draft of a monographic card for "Pole Fungus A". A paper for dicussion
1974 - IRG/WP 124
L Harmsen


HCB - a new preservative combination for wood pole maintenance
1996 - IRG/WP 96-30122
New combination of heavy creosoted boron (HCB) applied on hardwood and softwood logs at different moisture content revealed successful diffusion of boron in all sapwoods within 7 days and in all sapwoods plus hardwoods within 15 days. The new cost effective paste sterilizes wood through diffusion and suitable for pole maintenance at groundline and above groundline e.g. cut ends, drilled holes, woo...
A K Lahiry


Rational weight per weight (w/w) qualifying retention from a pole bank in Bangladesh
2000 - IRG/WP 00-40187
Weight per weight (w/w) vs weight per volume (w/v) retention study revealed that the w/w % retention is found to be appropriate and uniform for all timber species in respect of its real effectiveness. The pole species having density below 512 kg/m3 (32pcf.) showing w/v retention below 20kg/m3 (1.25pcf.) have equal w/w retention of 4%. The apparently reduced w/v retention of low density poles will ...
A K Lahiry


Utility, deterioration and preservation of marine timbers in India
2005 - IRG/WP 05-40314
Timber is extensively used in India in the marine environment for various purposes due to its several advantages over modern materials. Infact, its use is increasing in recent years, finding wider and wider applications and this scenario is not going to change in the near future. Though, the bio-deterioration problem is found very severe in tropical waters, still indigenous methods are widely empl...
B Tarakanadha, M V Rao, M Balaji, P K Aggarwal, K S Rao


Diffusion of fused borate rods in top ends of poles
1989 - IRG/WP 3518
Diffusion tests of fused borate rods were carried out on extremities of sapwood poles in service. Rods were set in drills under the cone with or without addition of liquid Boracol 40. After one year of weathering, a good diffusion in the slice under the cone and even below the slice and in the cone itself was observed in Scots pine and spruce poles. The rods were still intacts and constitute, in f...
D Dirol, J P Guder


Copper naphthenate-treated Southern Pine pole stubs in field exposure. -Part 2: Chemical characterization of full size pole stubs 12 years after treatment
2000 - IRG/WP 00-30246
This study examines the influence of pre-treatment and post-treatment steaming on the character and physio-chemical nature of copper naphthenate in hydrocarbon solvent treated pine in larger, pole diameter, pole stub-length samples. This work is the continuation of two projects that began almost a decade ago. Previous reports indicated that certain morphological changes might occur in small labora...
H M Barnes, D P Kamdem, M H Freeman


The microbiological treatment of chlorophenolic preservative in spent utility poles
1993 - IRG/WP 93-50001-24
The number of pentachlorophenol (PCP) treated poles being removed from service is increasing, but disposal options for this material are limited. Biological Degradation of the preservatives in spent poles, before disposal or reuse, offers a promising technique. The reduction of PCP in treated timber, after inoculation with PCP-degrading bacterial species, Rhodococcus chlorophenolicus and Flavobact...
A McBain, F Cui, J N R Ruddick


Preservatives treatment and field test monitoring of spruce pole stock: CCA and fumigant treatments
1990 - IRG/WP 3619
The fumigants trichloronitromethane (chloropicrin) and sodium N-methyldithiocarbamate (SNMDC) were used to treat red spruce pole stock, either CCA treated or untreated, through holes bored through the pole's center. The poles were analyzed for the presence of microorganisms immediately before ground installation and again after installation at a pole test site. Monitoring of fumigant move...
A J Pendlebury, B Goodell


Fungi associated with groundline soft rot decay in copper/chrome/arsenic treated heartwood utility poles of Malaysian hardwoods
1992 - IRG/WP 92-1567
Copper-chrome-arsenic treated heartwood from Malaysian hardwood utility poles in service for 8-23 y at two localities in the wet tropical Peninsula Malaysia were surveyed for soft rot in the ground-contact region. Soft rot decay was detected in all the poles. Isolation studies indicated the ability of a variety of microfungi and basidiomycetes to colonize treated heartwood. Most isolates exhibited...
A H H Wong, R B Pearce, S C Watkinson


Sap displacement treatment of utility poles in Papua New Guinea
1977 - IRG/WP 3102
Rapid growth of rural electrification in P.N.G. has created a considerable demand for treated poles. In the past power lines have been run on steel poles but the Government of P.N.G. is now seeking to make maximum use of the country's own resources rather than continue to rely upon imported materials such as steel poles. To some extent, this demand is being met by expansion of existing va...
C R Levy


Wood preservation in Kenya
2000 - IRG/WP 00-40191
Current research on wood preservation in Kenya is mainly on the development of biological control of wood-destroying termite species, using mycoinsecticides. The major research institutions include the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI), Moi University and the International Centre for Insect Physiology (ICIPE). Training institutions include Fore...
G Ochiel


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