Critical moisture conditions for fungal decay of modified wood by basidiomycetes as detected by pile tests
-
Linda Meyer
,
Christian Brischke
Abstract
The aim of cell wall modification is to keep wood moisture content (MC) below favorable conditions for decay organisms. However, thermally modified, furfurylated, and acetylated woods partly show higher MCs than untreated wood in outdoor exposure. The open question is to which extent decay is influenced by the presence of liquid water in cell lumens. The present paper contributes to this topic and reports on physiological threshold values for wood decay fungi with respect to modified wood. In total, 4200 specimens made from acetylated, furfurylated, and thermally modified beech wood (Fagus sylvatica L.) and Scots pine sapwood (sW) (Pinus sylvestris L.) were exposed to Coniophora puteana and Trametes versicolor. Piles consisting of 50 small specimens were incubated above malt agar in Erlenmeyer flasks for 16 weeks. In general, pile upward mass loss (ML) and MC decreased. Threshold values for fungal growth and decay (ML≥2%) were determined. In summary, the minimum MC for fungal decay was slightly below fiber saturation point of the majority of the untreated and differently modified materials. Surprisingly, T. versicolor was able to degrade untreated beech wood at a minimum of 15% MC, and growth was possible at 13% MC. By contrast, untreated pine sW was not decayed by C.puteana at less than 29% MC.
Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. Tobias Huckfeldt for many valuable scientific comments. The Northern European Network for Wood Science and Engineering (WSE) is acknowledged for granting the first author an STSM, enabling the research presented.
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©2016 by De Gruyter
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Original Articles
- Ferulates and lignin structural composition in cork
- Comparison of pulp species in IONCELL-P: selective hemicellulose extraction method with ionic liquids
- A novel and highly efficient polymerization of sulfomethylated alkaline lignins via alkyl chain cross-linking method
- Curing of wood treated with vinyl acetate-epoxidized linseed oil copolymer (VAc-ELO)
- Screening of juvenile Pinus radiata wood by means of Py-GC/MS for compression wood focussing on the ratios of p-hydroxyphenyl to guaiacyl units (H/G ratios)
- Characterization of adhesive penetration in wood bond by means of scanning thermal microscopy (SThM)
- Critical moisture conditions for fungal decay of modified wood by basidiomycetes as detected by pile tests
- Synthesis of fire retardants based on N and P and poly(sodium silicate-aluminum dihydrogen phosphate) (PSADP) and testing the flame-retardant properties of PSADP impregnated poplar wood
- Monitoring electrical properties of thermally modified wood as a possible tool for quality assessment
- Formation and properties of polyelectrolytes/TiO2 composite coating on wood surfaces through layer-by-layer assembly method
- The effect of temperature and moisture content on the fracture behaviour of spruce and birch
- A three-dimensional void reconstruction method for analyzing fractal dimensions of void volume in wood-strand composites
- Erratum
- Erratum to: Standard and non-standard deformation behaviour of European beech and Norway spruce during compression
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Original Articles
- Ferulates and lignin structural composition in cork
- Comparison of pulp species in IONCELL-P: selective hemicellulose extraction method with ionic liquids
- A novel and highly efficient polymerization of sulfomethylated alkaline lignins via alkyl chain cross-linking method
- Curing of wood treated with vinyl acetate-epoxidized linseed oil copolymer (VAc-ELO)
- Screening of juvenile Pinus radiata wood by means of Py-GC/MS for compression wood focussing on the ratios of p-hydroxyphenyl to guaiacyl units (H/G ratios)
- Characterization of adhesive penetration in wood bond by means of scanning thermal microscopy (SThM)
- Critical moisture conditions for fungal decay of modified wood by basidiomycetes as detected by pile tests
- Synthesis of fire retardants based on N and P and poly(sodium silicate-aluminum dihydrogen phosphate) (PSADP) and testing the flame-retardant properties of PSADP impregnated poplar wood
- Monitoring electrical properties of thermally modified wood as a possible tool for quality assessment
- Formation and properties of polyelectrolytes/TiO2 composite coating on wood surfaces through layer-by-layer assembly method
- The effect of temperature and moisture content on the fracture behaviour of spruce and birch
- A three-dimensional void reconstruction method for analyzing fractal dimensions of void volume in wood-strand composites
- Erratum
- Erratum to: Standard and non-standard deformation behaviour of European beech and Norway spruce during compression
