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The Bremen Cog of 1380 – An electron microscopic study of its degraded wood before and after stabilization with PEG

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Published/Copyright: June 1, 2005
Holzforschung
From the journal Volume 58 Issue 3

Abstract

The Bremen Cog is a big ship built AD 1380 from oak wood. After its recovery from the river Weser, the water-logged ship's timbers were successfully stabilized using a novel two-step polyethylene glycol (PEG) treatment. An electron microscopic study of the patterns of degradation and of the distribution of PEG within the Cog wood is described. Descriptions like these do not exist for many well known archaeological objects. SEM revealed that in areas with extensive degradation, wood cell walls are thinned and cells have a distorted appearance. TEM provided evidence that the wood has been degraded primarily by erosion bacteria. The stabilization treatment involved impregnation first with PEG 200 and then with PEG 3000. The SEM observations of PEG-impregnated wood revealed that in degraded tissues all cell types are well filled with PEG 3000. Non-degraded tissues are impermeable to PEG 3000 and are impregnated only with PEG 200. SEM confirmed earlier fluorescence microscopic evidence, that PEG 200 is absorbed by the cell walls.

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Published Online: 2005-06-01
Published in Print: 2004-05-12

Copyright © 2004 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG

Articles in the same Issue

  1. The Bremen Cog of 1380 – An electron microscopic study of its degraded wood before and after stabilization with PEG
  2. Ultrastructure of iodine treated wood
  3. Effects of refining on the fibre structure of kraft pulps as revealed by FE-SEM and TEM: Influence of alkaline degradation
  4. Changes in the fiber wall during refining of bleached pine kraft pulp
  5. An unusual formation of tension wood in a natural forest Acacia sp.
  6. Changes in the surface properties of wood due to sanding
  7. Use of near infrared spectroscopy to predict the mechanical properties of six softwoods
  8. The creep of wood destabilized by change in moisture content. Part 1: The creep behaviors of wood during and immediately after drying
  9. Modeling the process of desorption of water in oak (Quercus robur L.) wood
  10. Moisture adsorption thermodynamics of wood from fractal-geometry approach
  11. Application of ionic liquids for electrostatic control in wood
  12. Ionic liquids in wood preservation
  13. New bis-quaternary ammonium and bis-imidazolium chloride wood preservatives
  14. Environmentally-benign wood preservatives based on an organic biocide:antioxidant combination: Ground-contact efficacy ratings and BHT depletion after four years of exposure
  15. Production of 2,5-dimethoxyhydroquinone by the brown-rot fungus Serpula lacrymans to drive extracellular Fenton reaction
  16. Fungal decay resistance of wood reacted with phosphorus pentoxide-amine system
  17. The use of organo alkoxysilane coupling agents for wood preservation
  18. Phenolic extractives from wood of birch (Betula pendula)
  19. Stability of arylglycerols during alkaline cooking
https://doi.org/10.1515/HF.2004.033

Articles in the same Issue

  1. The Bremen Cog of 1380 – An electron microscopic study of its degraded wood before and after stabilization with PEG
  2. Ultrastructure of iodine treated wood
  3. Effects of refining on the fibre structure of kraft pulps as revealed by FE-SEM and TEM: Influence of alkaline degradation
  4. Changes in the fiber wall during refining of bleached pine kraft pulp
  5. An unusual formation of tension wood in a natural forest Acacia sp.
  6. Changes in the surface properties of wood due to sanding
  7. Use of near infrared spectroscopy to predict the mechanical properties of six softwoods
  8. The creep of wood destabilized by change in moisture content. Part 1: The creep behaviors of wood during and immediately after drying
  9. Modeling the process of desorption of water in oak (Quercus robur L.) wood
  10. Moisture adsorption thermodynamics of wood from fractal-geometry approach
  11. Application of ionic liquids for electrostatic control in wood
  12. Ionic liquids in wood preservation
  13. New bis-quaternary ammonium and bis-imidazolium chloride wood preservatives
  14. Environmentally-benign wood preservatives based on an organic biocide:antioxidant combination: Ground-contact efficacy ratings and BHT depletion after four years of exposure
  15. Production of 2,5-dimethoxyhydroquinone by the brown-rot fungus Serpula lacrymans to drive extracellular Fenton reaction
  16. Fungal decay resistance of wood reacted with phosphorus pentoxide-amine system
  17. The use of organo alkoxysilane coupling agents for wood preservation
  18. Phenolic extractives from wood of birch (Betula pendula)
  19. Stability of arylglycerols during alkaline cooking
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