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Quantitative chemical indicators to assess the gradation of compression wood

  • Bernadette Nanayakkara , Merilyn Manley-Harris , Ian D. Suckling and Lloyd A. Donaldson
Published/Copyright: May 7, 2009
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Holzforschung
From the journal Volume 63 Issue 4

Abstract

A chemistry-based parameter has been sought for determining the gradation of compression wood (CW), i.e., the severity, in tissues of Pinus radiata wood. Fluorescence microscopy was the reference for characterisation of the tissues containing CW. The collected material contained CW of varying severity, beginning with normal wood (NW containing no CW), continuing with material with some features of CW (CW of mild severity, MCW) and ending up with a material with pronounced features of CW (CW of high severity, SCW). Matching opposite wood (OW) was also included in the study. The chemical analyses included lignin determination, sugar analysis in the acid hydrolysate, thioacidolysis, 31P-NMR spectroscopic analysis and steric exclusion chromatography of thioacidolysis products. As the severity of CW changed progressively from NW through MCW to SCW, all chemical parameters changed concurrently. In particular, levels of galactose and lignin increased, while those of glucose and mannose decreased. The amounts of p-hydroxyphenyl β-ethers released by chemical degradation and uncondensed p-hydroxyphenyl C-9 units also increased at elevated CW severity levels. The amounts of galactose and the p-hydroxyphenyl content of the lignin correlated linearly with lignin for CW samples. The chemical differences between CW and OW in the stem, branch and seedling were similar, i.e., they are independent of the morphological origin of the sample. Parameters based on the p-hydroxyphenyl unit content appear the most suitable chemical indicators of CW severity, as they are least sensitive to the sample's morphological origin and their response to CW severity is high.


Corresponding author. Scion, Private Bag 3020, Rotorua, New Zealand

Received: 2008-9-22
Accepted: 2009-1-12
Published Online: 2009-05-07
Published Online: 2009-05-07
Published in Print: 2009-07-01

©2009 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin New York

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  1. Original Papers
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  3. Colour in thermally modified wood of beech, Norway spruce and Scots pine. Part 1: Colour evolution and colour changes
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  6. High-yield kraft pulping of Eucalyptus grandis Hill ex Maiden biotreated by Ceriporiopsis subvermispora under two different culture conditions
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  8. Selective enzyme impregnation of chips to reduce specific refining energy in alkaline peroxide mechanical pulping
  9. Radical chain reactions in pyrolytic cleavage of the ether linkages of lignin model dimers and a trimer
  10. Quantitative chemical indicators to assess the gradation of compression wood
  11. Comparison of mechanical properties of thermally modified wood at growth ring and cell wall level by means of instrumented indentation tests
  12. Revisiting the transition between juvenile and mature wood: a comparison of fibre length, microfibril angle and relative wood density in lodgepole pine
  13. Characterization of the wood quality of pernambuco (Caesalpinia echinata Lam) by measurements of density, extractives content, microfibril angle, stiffness, color, and NIR spectroscopy
  14. An improved drying model for highly-impermeable hardwoods
  15. Neutron attenuation coefficients for non-invasive quantification of wood properties
  16. Topochemical investigations of cell walls in developing xylem of beech (Fagus sylvatica L.)
  17. Effects of substrate on laboratory spalting of sugar maple
  18. Short Notes
  19. Apigenin derivatives from Paulownia tomentosa Steud. var. tomentosa stem barks
  20. Forming limits for the bulk forming of solid wood
  21. Meetings
  22. Meetings
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