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Laboratory methods for assessing the resistance of wood plastic composites to fungal attack.
2006 - IRG/WP 06-20340
Wood plastic composites (WPC’s) have many attractive material features including dimensional stability and resistance to moisture, but the wood in these materials remains susceptible to fungal attack. Assessing WPC decay resistance in laboratory trials has proven difficult because the slow moisture sorption characteristics of this material do not allow for sufficient fungal attack over the trad...
J J Morrell


Biological Protection of Composite Panel from Moulds and Decay
2007 - IRG/WP 07-10612
Composite panels, such as oriented strand board (OSB), are widely used in house construction in North America. These structural panels are normally made of non-durable wood species and are susceptible to moulds and decay when exposed to wet conditions. Building envelope failures due to moulds, decay or poor construction practices can negatively impact the image of wood. To ensure durability of com...
Dian-Qing Yang, Xiang-Ming Wang, Hui Wan


Detecting fungal DNA in treated and non-treated wood
2007 - IRG/WP 07-10621
Isolating fungi from wood has long involved culturing on selective media followed by identification using various keys. This process can be cumbersome, costly, and, most importantly, not always capable of detecting all of the fungi present. The recent development of molecular methods for isolation and identification of fungi has created tremendous opportunities for expanding our knowledge of the...
C Freitag, M Freitag, J Morrell


Effect of fungal attack on maximum load capacity of simulated wall assemblies
2007 - IRG/WP 07-20363
The effects of moisture intrusion and fungal attack on the maximum load capacity of nailed assemblies was investigated using one white and one brown rot fungus against 4 material combinations over a 20 week period. Wetting significantly reduced the maximum load capacity of all four material combinations, while wetting and autoclaving only affected the OSB sheathing/spruce stud. The white rot fung...
N Melencion, J J Morrell


A method and apparatus for rapid assessment of termite barriers.
2007 - IRG/WP 07-20366
This paper describes an apparatus for rapid assessment of barriers to subterranean termite foraging. The method and apparatus arose from the development of a novel physical termite barrier. The barrier had to be flexible, resilient, able to be applied as a liquid and be neither toxic nor repellent. This posed a special problem as existing laboratory assessment techniques did not offer a sufficient...
D McG Ewart


Effect of Cinnamomum kanehirae Extractives on the Compositions of the Fermentation Broth of Antrodia cinnamomea
2007 - IRG/WP 07-10632
The fruiting body of Antrodia cinnamomea, called niu-chang-chih, is well known and highly prized in Taiwan as a folk medicine. This fungus is endemic to Taiwan and the growth of which is restricted to the inner heartwood cavities of another endemic tree species, Cinnamomum kanehirae. The fungal basidiomes have been used for treating food and drug poisoning, diarrhea, abdominal pain, hypertension, ...
Ruo-Yun Yeh, Yuan-Min Shen , Shang-Tzen Chang


Detection of Anti-Fungal Sapwood Extractives in Non-Durable Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris), Rubberwood (Hevea brasiliensis) and Jelutong (Dyera costulata)
2007 - IRG/WP 07-10634
A general laboratory bioassay method of Woodward and Pearce (1985) was adopted to detect anti-fungal activity of sapwood or heartwood extractives of 5 Malaysian hardwoods [dark red meranti heartwood (Shorea spp.), red balau heartwood (Shorea spp.), kulim heartwood (Scorodocarpus borneensis), jelutong sapwood (Dyera costulata) and rubberwood sapwood (Hevea brasiliensis), including the temperate Pin...
A H H Wong, R B Pearce


A step towards a better understanding of fungal colonization of modified wood - QRT-PCR studies
2008 - IRG/WP 08-10653
The area of wood protection is in a period of change. New wood protection systems have been developed while their mode of action remains insufficiently understood. The development of molecular methods provides potential tools to investigate the interaction between modified wood and decay fungi. One small step to tackle some of the unsolved questions about the mode of action of modified wood is tak...
G Alfredsen, A Pilgård, A Hietala


Effect of amphiphilic antioxidant alkyl ammonium ascorbate on inhibition of fungal growth: Application to wood preservatives formulation
2008 - IRG/WP 08-30466
Amphiphilic surfactants were synthesized from ascorbic acid and different fatty amines and evaluated for formulation of wood preservation products. Characterization of physicochemical properties of the new compounds indicated classical behavior of cationic surfactants. Antioxidant properties, estimated using methyl linoleate oxidation inhibition method, were similar to that of ascorbic acid teste...
C Gérardin , T Koumbi Mounanga, P Gérardin


Improvement of the Fungal Resistance of Japanese Cedar by the ThermoWood Process
2008 - IRG/WP 08-40422
The effect of the ThermoWood Process on sapwood of the Japanese cedar, Cryptomeria japonica, was investigated. Seven matched specimens were cut from a sapwood board of Japanese cedar and subjected to thermal treatments according to the ThermoWood Process. The decay resistance and chemical and physical properties of the treated specimens and untreated specimen were investigated. The decay test wa...
I Momohara, T Morita, S Shouho, A Yamaguchi


Ecotoxicity of furfurylated wood – Effect of leachate on aquatic bacteria
2008 - IRG/WP 08-50250
Environmental concern regarding the use of toxic preservatives such as CCA (chromated copper arsenate) has been put forward. In the EU, USA and Japan, CCA is now phased out for residential use and for use in water contact. Several ecotoxicological studies of wood treated with conventional preservatives were carried out in the late 1990s. In these studies it was concluded that the main impact is to...
A Pilgård, M Westin


The Effects of Solar Radiation on the Fungal Colonization and Color of Weathered Wood
2008 - IRG/WP 08-10676
Solar radiation rapidly depolymerizes lignin at wood surfaces exposed outdoors producing a suite of low molecular weight aromatic compounds within weathered wood. Fungi colonizing weathered wood are able to metabolize these aromatic compounds, and many of them also contain high levels of melanin to protect themselves from the harmful effects of UV radiation. Both of these adaptations suggest that ...
V Hernandez, C Breuil, P D Evans


Aislamiento, identificación y evaluación enzimática de hongos de pudrición de madera de la Región de los Lagos
2008 - IRG/WP 08-10680
So far, systematic investigations have not been developed to determine the fungal diversity associated with wood in Chile. In addition, little is known about the mycoflora capabilities or their enzymatic processes in biotechnology although different research has hinted at the great potential of these microorganisms in various industrial processes. The aim of this work is to isolate, identify and e...
R Ortiz, J Navarrete, C Oviedo, R Blanchette


Discovering anti-fungal agents in New Zealand native plants for use in wood protection
2009 - IRG/WP 09-10692
Extracts from Hinau (Elaeocarpus dentatus) leaves were tested in the laboratory for antifungal activity. In addition, the anatomical structure of the leaf was also examined by a combination of light and scanning electron microscopy. Chemical characterisation of the extracts and investigation into potential use of its components for wood protection is underway. A combination of light microscopy (...
C Rickard, T Singh, A Singh, R Newman


The effect of different foundation systems against fungal flora in the crawl space of a new wooden Japanese house
2009 - IRG/WP 09-10700
In order to establish novel preventive measures against damage of wooden houses by decay fungi with less-use or no-use of chemicals, we periodically monitored the fungal flora in the crawl space of a new wooden Japanese house build with recyclable and low-environmental load materials at the Research Institute for Sustainable Humanosphere, Kyoto University. We employed either a layer of concrete or...
A Toyoumi, S Horisawa, T Yoshimura, S Doi,Y Imamura


Postia placenta gene expression of oxidative and carbohydrate metabolism related genes during growth in furfurylated wood
2009 - IRG/WP 09-10701
A range of studies the last decade have shown that modified wood can provide excellent protection against a range of wood deteriorating organisms, including decay fungi. However, we still lack information about why the modified wood is protected from microbial attack. Several hypotheses have been put forward e.g. inhibition of action of specific enzymes, but they still need testing. An understandi...
G Alfredsen, C G Fossdal


Durability and fungal colonisation patterns in wood samples after six years in soil contact evaluated with qPCR, microscopy, TGA, chitin- and ergosterol assays
2009 - IRG/WP 09-20402
There is a need to establish new objective and sensitive methods for early detection and quantification of decay fungi in wood materials. Molecular methods have proven to be a useful tool within wood protection issues, however, this field is still poorly explored and so far relatively few have used these methods within the field of wood deterioration. Among the techniques used in the indirect quan...
A Pilgård, G Alfredsen, I Børja, C Björdal


Effect of Preservative Treatment on Fungal Colonization of Teak, Redwood, and Western Red Cedar
2009 - IRG/WP 09-20404
Fungal flora present in preservative treated samples or non-treated samples from sapwood and heartwood of teak, western red cedar, redwood, and southern yellow pine was assessed after 6 to 18 months of exposure near Hilo, Hawaii. The objectives were to compare fungal composition and diversity between treated and non-treated samples, and to examine the use of molecular techniques for assessing fung...
Y Cabrera, C Freitag, J J Morrell


A rapid microscale assay for determining growth of wood inhabiting fungi against Lactobacillus metabolites
2009 - IRG/WP 09-20412
Lactobacillus sp. are well known for their ability to produce secondary metabolites with potent inhibitory activity against a wide range of bacterial species and there is increasing evidence to support their antifungal activity. These metabolites are often screened in laboratories using microscale 96-well plate optical density assays. The objective of this study was to develop an optical density a...
D O’Callahan, T Singh, I McDonald


Fungal decay resistance and durability of wood products made from borax-impregnated wood and bonded with corn starch and tannin adhesive
2009 - IRG/WP 09-30494
At present, the production of wood composites mainly relies on the petrochemical-based and formaldehyde-based adhesives such as phenol formaldehyde (PF) resins and urea formaldehyde (UF) resins, which are non-renewable and therefore ultimately limited in supply. This paper concerns the decay resistance of wood products bonded with a new, environment-friendly adhesive derived from abundant and rene...
A Moubarik, A Pizzi, A Allal, F Charrier, B Charrier


Potential synergy between natural product extracts for limiting fungal decay
2009 - IRG/WP 09-30495
Natural products often exhibit tremendous potential for inhibiting various microorganisms when they are tested in petri dish tests, but perform poorly when tested in vivo. The failures can often be attributed to a lack of broad spectrum activity against the range of organisms present in a natural environment. One method for overcoming this challenge is to use extracts from a number of sources with...
M Maoz, C Freitag, J J Morrell


Synthesis of a rosin amide and its resistance to wood decay fungi
2009 - IRG/WP 09-30517
Rosin was reacted with diethyltriamine (DETA) after being modified by acryl acid with the weight ratio of 4.5:1 and a rosin amide (RA) derivative was produced at the conditions as follows: modified rosin and DETA mole ratio of 1:3.5, dimethylbenzene as water carrying agent, reaction temperature of 160-180°C, and reaction time of 8h. The chemical structure of the product as RA was identified by F...
Shuangyue Li, Shujun Li, Jing Wang


Fungal Attack on Lignin and Cellulose: Elucidation of Brown- and White-Rot Mechanisms Comparing Biomimetic and In-Vivo Degradation Patterns
2010 - IRG/WP 10-10714
This paper examines research and hypotheses that have been developed over several years on wood degradation mechanisms. This information is combined with new data and analyses to explain why wood decay patterns caused by brown-rot fungi and specific types of white-rot fungi are different. New data, including work with both biomimetic studies on low molecular weight compounds, degradative enzymes, ...
V Arantes, B Goodell, A M F Milagres, Yuhui Qian, T Filley, J Jellison, S Kelley


Seasonal shifts of fungal community structure at the interface of treated or untreated wood and soil
2010 - IRG/WP 10-10721
Many wood species are degraded rapidly in soil by the fungal community. In order to preserve wood and structures in which it is used, chemical preservatives are used. Little is known about the interaction of treated wood and the surrounding soil fungal community. For this work, presented at IRG 41, wooden specimens (Pinus sylvestris sapwood, sizes 25 mm x 50 mm x 500 mm (longitudinal)) were treate...
M Noll, I Stephan


Frequency of fungal decay in softwood windows in Germany
2010 - IRG/WP 10-10725
Knowing how often fungal decay occurs is a fundamental basis for general recommendations of preservative measures. To optimize the German recommendations for chemical wood preservation of windows made out of pine or spruce more than 2000 windows have been inspected. All windows had an opaque coating and were between 2 and 17 years old. The selection of the inspected windows was kept as randomly as...
D Lukowsky, O Moarcas, A Luette


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