Durability of thermally modified Norway spruce and Scots pine in above ground conditions

Sini Metsä-Kortelainen*, Leena Paajanen, Hannu Viitanen

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

    21 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    One of the main objectives of thermal modification is to increase the biological durability of wood. In this study the fungal resistance of Norway spruce and Scots pine, thermally modified at 195°C and 210°C, was studied with a lap-joint field test. Untreated pine and spruce and pine impregnated with tributyl tin oxide (TBTO) and copper, chromium and arsenic (CCA) were selected as reference materials. The evaluations were carried out after 1, 2 and 9 years of exposure. After 1 and 2 years of exposure mainly discoloration was detected. Only the untreated pine was slightly affected by decay fungi. There were significant differences in the decay ratings of untreated and thermally modified wood materials after 9 years in the field. While the untreated wood materials were severely attacked by decay fungi or reached failure rating, only small areas of incipient decay were detected in the thermally modified samples. Thermally modified pine was slightly more decayed than thermally modified spruce. The only wood material without any signs of decay was CCA-treated pine, since some of the TBTO-treated pine samples were also moderately attacked by fungal decay. The results of the lap-joint test had a good correlation with mass losses in a laboratory test with brown-rot fungi.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)163-169
    JournalWood Material Science and Engineering
    Volume6
    Issue number4
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2011
    MoE publication typeA1 Journal article-refereed

    Keywords

    • Biological durability
    • brown rot
    • decay
    • discolouration
    • Norway spruce
    • Scots pine
    • thermal modification

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Durability of thermally modified Norway spruce and Scots pine in above ground conditions'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this