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Detection of Aureobasidium as the dominant fungus on coated wood
2013 - IRG/WP 13-10796
Wood is often covered with a coating in order to protect the surface. Unwanted dark mold growth on paint covered surfaces in external conditions is a familiar phenomenon. Simple microbial techniques have commonly been used to determine the dominant fungal species present in the discoloured area, for example morphological analysis of microscopic preparations of fungal pieces sticking to an adhesive...
E J Van Nieuwenhuijzen, M F Sailer, R A Samson, O C G Adan


Surface moulds and staining fungi on acetylated wood – effect of increasing acetyl content
2013 - IRG/WP 13-10797
Wood used in outside applications is susceptible to weathering and photo degradation, which often leads to surface discoloration, loss of brightness and surface deterioration. Research has shown that acetylated wood is more resistant against brown rot, white rot and soft rot, and more dimensionally stable than untreated wood. However, acetylated wood seems still to be disfigured by surface moulds ...
L Ross Gobakken, S Bardage, C J Long II


Inhibitory extractives or nutrients? Mould growth on coated heartwood and sapwood of Pinus sylvestris and Gleditsia triacanthos
2013 - IRG/WP 13-10806
Sometimes mould fungi grow over weathered coated sapwood, whereas the coated heartwood is not colonised. Two factors may be responsible for these differences: Either the larger content of nutrients in the sapwood, or the content of biocidal extractives in the heartwood. In this study the factors for the difference in mould growth on coated heartwood and sapwood of Pinus sylvestris (Scots Pine) and...
D Lukowsky, N Buddruhs


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


Method for determining the critical moisture level for mould growth on building materials
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20530
The natural conditions of relative humidity (RH) and temperature (T) in different parts of a building is rarely constant over time. Instead, RH and T often vary cyclically and may pose a risk of mould growth as these conditions are the two key environmental parameters that controls mould growth. Consideration to both humidity and temperature conditions and the susceptibility to mould in a material...
A Ekstrand-Tobin, P Johansson, G Bok


Surface energy characterization of thermally modified wood using inverse gas chromatography
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20532
The objective of this work is to characterize surface energetics of thermally modified wood. Such information may be useful for a better understanding and predictions of adhesion properties between the modified wood and other material systems, e.g. coatings, adhesives or matrices in composites. Inverse gas chromatography (IGC) was used to study the surface energy characteristics of thermally modif...
S Källbom, K Segerholm, D Jones, M Wålinder


Moisture distribution in glulam beams with natural cracks observed with CT Scanning before and after rain
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20534
The way cracks in outdoor wooden constructions affect durability is an interesting topic, since a certain amount of cracks can always be found naturally in wood and glued laminated wood. The question in this was, can cracks lead water into the wood and thereby increase the risk for decay and reduce strength and service life. Moisture balance, i.e., water absorption and water distribution were stud...
K Sandberg


Performance of biocide-free preservative-protective systems modified with organosilicon compounds
2013 - IRG/WP 13-30628
The objective of the research was to determine the influence of organosilicon compounds in preservative-protective systems on the selected properties of pine wood aimed for outdoor use. The investigations were made for biocide-free systems based on alkyd resin and natural oils modified with alkylalkoxy-, amino- and glycidoxysilanes. The special attention was paid on the influence of hydrophobic pr...
B Mazela, P Hochmańska, T Krystofiak


Preparation and characterization of activated carbon fibers prepared from liquefied wood
2013 - IRG/WP 13-40636
Activated carbon fibers were prepared from liquefied wood through stream activation. The effects of activation temperature and time on the microstructure and surface functional groups of the liquefied wood activated carbon fibers (LWACFs) were studied using analysis of burning behavior, X-ray diffraction, nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and SEM. The resu...
Wenjing Liu, Guangjie Zhao


Modelling the risk for mould growth on timber stored outdoors protected from rain
2013 - IRG/WP 13-20529
A mould resistance design (MRD) model was used to calculate the maximum duration of storage of timber outdoors under cover (protected from rain) before the onset of mould growth on the surface of wood. The prediction model is based on laboratory tests performed in constant and cyclic climates and were also confirmed against exposure tests in attics and crawl spaces. The prediction model presented ...
E Frühwald Hansson, S Bardage, S Thelandersson


Using hyperspectral imaging to detect and quantify mould and blue stain on coated and uncoated wood
2014 - IRG/WP 14-10822
Hyperspectral imaging has been applied on the surface of samples of coated and uncoated Norway spruce (Picea abies) as a new technique to detect and quantify growth of mould and blue stain fungi. Principal Component Analysis of the hyperspectral images resulted in a clear visualization of the fungi and the amount of mould coverage could be estimated. This indicates that NIR hyperspectral imaging c...
L Ross Gobakken, I Burud, A Flø, K Kvaal, T K Thiis


Assessment of Scots pine sapwood susceptibility to moulds by determination of fungi growth and ergosterol content in infested wood
2014 - IRG/WP 14-20540
The susceptibility of wood to filamentous fungi (mould) attack is determine mainly by laboratory methods with descriptive grading of fungal growth on the surface of the wood specimens. It is a lot of different grading scale of fungi growth, but determination of the size of fungi growth is many times not easy, not clear and often difficult. Although the filamentous fungi are not included to microor...
A Fojutowski, A Koziróg, A Kropacz


A screening of factors that might influence the result of laboratory decay tests
2014 - IRG/WP 14-20548
Laboratory fungal decay tests provide important tools for performance testing of wood materials. But they are also hampered with some uncertainties regarding reproducibility. In addition to variation between fungal species and strains the test conditions are also believed to have some influence. The aim of this study was to screen the effect of a selection of test parameters that might influence t...
E Larnøy, G Alfredsen, A Treu, S Kolstad


Visualization of gold/silver nanostars in wood by surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy
2014 - IRG/WP 14-30653
Nanotechnology is a fast growing up-to-date technology and ventures expeditiously in the wood preservative market. However, there is still a huge lack of understanding about the interaction and incorporation of nanoparticles (NSs) in wood. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) offers unique advantages as an analytical tool with a high selectivity and sensitivity without matrix interference. Her...
C Geers, L Rodríguez-Lorenzo, M Placencia Peña, P Brodard, T Volkmer, B Rothen-Rutishauser, A Petri-Fink


VOC-free remedial treatment agent on organic solvent basis with surface cleaning by photocatalysis using titanium dioxide
2014 - IRG/WP 14-40651
Due to the EU Regulations according to the harmonisation of the European market of biocidal products and the EU Regulations regarding emissions of volatile organic compounds in residential properties a new VOC free yet organic solvent based remedial treatment agent is introduced including a potential method to clean up the wooden surface of remaining biocides after a remedial treatment using photo...
H Ahl, J Fromm, P Jüngel, E Melcher, M Pallaske


The effect of UV irradiation on some technological properties of different polyurethane varnishes coated plywood panels from veneers dried at different temperatures
2014 - IRG/WP 14-40661
In this study, the effect of UV irradiation on some technological properties of three different polyurethane varnishes coated plywood panels produced from Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster L.) veneers manuactured and dried at different temperatures was studied. Accordingly, 32°C log peeling temperature and three different veneer drying temperatures (110, 140 and ...
Ö Özgenç, C Demirkir, Ü C Yildiz, G Çolakoğlu


A guideline for sorting easy to impregnate Scots pine sapwood based on three treatability studies from Northern Europe
2014 - IRG/WP 14-40669
Scots pine sapwood is generally considered an easy to impregnate wood species, though it reportedly faces challenges towards a homogeneous impregnation and large variations in treatability are reported for the material. This study comprises the results of three treatability tests that were performed on Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) sapwood. The material impregnated was originated from a large ...
K Zimmer, E Larnøy, A Treu


Field Performance of Old-Growth and Second-Growth Western Red Cedar Fence Posts with and without Barrier Wraps
2015 - IRG/WP 15-10838
Many authors have suggested natural durability may be lower in second-growth western redcedar than in old-growth. One potential means of offsetting a decline in durability is use of physical barriers to separate the wood from soil. In the present work we compared the durability of old-growth and second-growth western red cedar posts, with and without barrier wraps, in a field test. After ten year...
P I Morris, J K Ingram, R Stirling


Investigations on the durability of several Congo basin wood species
2015 - IRG/WP 15-10840
The sawdust of ten wood species was studied to assess their natural resistance to decay. The extractives and lignin contents were primarily determined (between 2.7-16.0% and 26.8-35.9% respectively) to give an overview of the chemical distribution. Then, a phytochemical screening (colorimetric methods) characterized the different chemical functional groups in all extracts studied. Antioxidant act...
S Mounguengui, J-B Tchinda Saha, M Kor Ndikontar, S Dumarçay, C Attéké, D Perrin, E Gelhaye,


Development of a rapid screening method to determine the susceptibility to mould growth of novel construction and insulation products
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20562
Wood-based materials are commonly used in building construction/insulation as a replacement for solid timber. However, these materials are susceptible to microbiological growth and different environmental conditions influence the vulnerability of wood-based materials. Moulds are a common problem found within homes and cause aesthetic damage, health problems and can increase material vulnerability ...
B K Stefanowski, S F Curling, E Mansour, G A Ormondroyd


Acceptance levels of surface disfigurement - tolerance to defects of coated wood
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20564
Service life planning (PSL) has become an important issue in performance based building and substantial progress has been made in recent years. The role of predicting the aesthetical service life of wooden building components has been underestimated for quite long time but is recently attracting more and more notice. It is influenced by numerous factors such as discoloration, fading, flaking, crac...
C Brischke, P Kaudewitz


Interaction between Aspergillus niger fungus and other filamentous fungi on salt-agar medium and their growth on natural wood and wood treated with fungicide
2015 - IRG/WP 15-20569
Aspergillus niger (An) is very often used alone or in mixture with other filamentous fungi of the genus in testing biocides in disinfection procedures, safety, hygiene, medical fields as well as for testing resistance of wood and wood-based materials to moulds. Softwood species as well as hardwood are overgrown with An fungus very easily, causing drop of mainly the aesthetic value of wood product....
A Fojutowski, A Kropacz, A Koziróg


Building solid foundations to support market growth of preserved wood in the UK – treatment quality, product approval and the largest national field trial of preservative treated wood in 50 years
2015 - IRG/WP 15-30662
The Wood Protection Association (WPA) has just commissioned Britain’s largest ever durability trial of home grown timber, having contracted Building Research Establishment (BRE) to conduct a long term controlled field trial of sawn and pressure treated British Softwood posts at two sites with differing soil conditions. This large scale Field Trial is the last of an innovative and substantial thr...
E Suttie, G Ewbank


Mould growth on spruce claddings and the effect of selected influencing factors after 4 years of outdoor testing
2015 - IRG/WP 15-30671
Norway spruce (Picea abies) is the most frequently chosen wood species as claddings in façades in Norway, and is used both coated and uncoated. The visual changes that occur during weathering can be colour changes, abrasion or wear, blistering, flaking, and even cracks in the wood or coating, but more often growth of mould and blue stain fungi is the main challenge. A field test with synchronous monitoring of relative humidity, air temperature, material temperature and wood moisture content in Norway spruce claddings has been performed in southern Norway as part of the ClimateLife project. Visual evaluation of blue stain and mould growth according to EN 927-3 was performed, and evaluation data after 46 months exposure is presented. The objectives were to study the effect of 1) environment, 2) cardinal direction and 3) colour of the coated surface on growth of blue stain and mould fungi and to study the variation in relative humidity, air temperature, wood moisture content and material temperature. After 46 months exposure, the red coating system had generally the lowest mould ratings and the uncoated claddings had the highest. Of the white coloured claddings the ones facing south had lower mould ratings than those facing north, but the opposite were found for red coloured claddings. The relative humidity was higher in front of claddings exposed northwards and in a shaded environment compared to an open environment against south. In an open environment red coloured claddings had the lowest wood moisture content and highest material temperature, and red coloured claddings against south had the highest maximum material temperature.
L Ross Gobakken, G I Vestøl


Termiticide Residues in Building Foundation Aggregate Fills After Trench and Surface Applications
2015 - IRG/WP 15-30679
Termiticide concentrations (ppm) in aggregate fill were determined by measuring active ingredient (a.i.) residues of two pyrethroid termiticides, Up-Cyde Pro® 2EC-cypermethrin, and BaseLine® EC-bifenthrin, at 24.0 hours, and then at 6.0- and 12.0-months after ‘horizontal’ surface applications, perimeter ‘trenching and rodding’ applications, or ‘rodding only’ trench applications at lo...
B M Kard, C E Koneman, K T Shelton, C C Luper, R A Grantham


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