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Publications

NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.

2021

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Abstract

Durability-based designs with timber require reliable information about the wood properties and how they affect its performance under variable exposure conditions. This study aimed at utilizing a material resistance model (Part 2 of this publication) based on a dose–response approach for predicting the relative decay rates in above-ground situations. Laboratory and field test data were, for the first time, surveyed globally and used to determine material-specific resistance dose values, which were correlated to decay rates. In addition, laboratory indicators were used to adapt the material resistance model to in-ground exposure. The relationship between decay rates in- and above-ground, the predictive power of laboratory indicators to predict such decay rates, and a method for implementing both in a service life prediction tool, were established based on 195 hardwoods, 29 softwoods, 19 modified timbers, and 41 preservative-treated timbers.

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Abstract

Service life planning with timber requires reliable models for quantifying the effects of exposure-related parameters and the material-inherent resistance of wood against biotic agents. The Meyer-Veltrup model was the first attempt to account for inherent protective properties and the wetting ability of wood to quantify resistance of wood in a quantitative manner. Based on test data on brown, white, and soft rot as well as moisture dynamics, the decay rates of different untreated wood species were predicted relative to the reference species of Norway spruce (Picea abies). The present study aimed to validate and optimize the resistance model for a wider range of wood species including very durable species, thermally and chemically modified wood, and preservative treated wood. The general model structure was shown to also be suitable for highly durable materials, but previously defined maximum thresholds had to be adjusted (i.e., maximum values of factors accounting for wetting ability and inherent protective properties) to 18 instead of 5 compared to Norway spruce. As expected, both the enlarged span in durability and the use of numerous and partly very divergent data sources (i.e., test methods, test locations, and types of data presentation) led to a decrease in the predictive power of the model compared to the original. In addition to the need to enlarge the database quantity and improve its quality, in particular for treated wood, it might be advantageous to use separate models for untreated and treated wood as long as the effect of additional impact variables (e.g., treatment quality) can be accounted for. Nevertheless, the adapted Meyer-Veltrup model will serve as an instrument to quantify material resistance for a wide range of wood-based materials as an input for comprehensive service life prediction software.

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Abstract

To evaluate the performance of new wood-based products, reference wood species with known performances are included in laboratory and field trials. However, different wood species vary in their durability performance, and there will also be a within-species variation. The primary aim of this paper was to compare the material resistance against decay fungi and moisture performance of three European reference wood species, i.e., Scots pine sapwood (Pinus sylvestris), Norway spruce (Picea abies), and European beech (Fagus sylvatica). Wood material was collected from 43 locations all over Europe and exposed to brown rot (Rhodonia placenta), white rot (Trametes versicolor) or soft rot fungi. In addition, five different moisture performance characteristics were analyzed. The main results were the two factors accounting for the wetting ability (kwa) and the inherent protective properties of wood (kinh), factors for conversion between Norway spruce vs. Scots pine sapwood or European beech for the three decay types and four moisture tests, and material resistance dose (DRd) per wood species. The data illustrate that the differences between the three European reference wood species were minor, both with regard to decay and moisture performance. The results also highlight the importance of defined boundaries for density and annual ring width when comparing materials within and between experiments. It was concluded that with the factors obtained, existing, and future test data, where only one or two of the mentioned reference species were used, can be transferred to models and prediction tools that use another of the reference species

Abstract

Understanding the quality of new raw material sources will be of great importance to ensure the development of a circular bioeconomy. Building up quality understanding of wood waste is an important step in this development. In this paper we probe two main questions, one substantial and one theoretical: What different understandings of wood waste quality exist and what significance do they have for the recycling and re-use of this waste fraction? And, what is the evolution of knowledge and sustainable practices of wood waste qualities a case of? The analysis is based on diverse perspectives and forms of methods and empirical material. Studies of policy documents, regulations, standards, etc. have been reviewed to uncover what kind of measures and concepts that have been important for governing and regulating wood waste handling. Interviews concerning wood and wood waste qualities have been conducted with key informants and people visiting recycling and waste management stations in Oslo and Akershus in Norway. By studying quality conceptions through the social birth, production, life, end-of-life and re-birth of wood products, we analyse socio-cultural conditions for sustainability. Furthermore we show how the evolution of knowledge and sustainable practices of wood waste qualities, in the meeting with standards and regulations, is a case of adaptation work in the evolution of Norwegian bioeconomy.

Abstract

Scots pine exhibits variations in ray anatomy, which are poorly understood. Some ray parenchyma cells develop thick and lignified cell walls before heartwood formation. We hypothesized that some stands and trees show high numbers of lignified and thick-walled parenchyma cells early in the sapwood. Therefore, a microscopic analysis of Scots pine sapwood from four different stands in Northern Europe was performed on Safranin — Astra blue-stained tangential micro sections from outer and inner sapwood areas. Significant differences in lignification and cell wall thickening of ray parenchyma cells were observed in the outer sapwood between all of the stands for the trees analyzed. On a single tree level, the relative lignification and cell wall thickening of ray parenchyma cells ranged from 4.3% to 74.3% in the outer sapwood. In the inner sapwood, lignification and cell wall thickening of ray parenchyma cells were more frequent. In some trees, however, the difference in lignification and cell wall thickening between inner and outer sapwood was small since early lignification, and cell wall thickening was already more common in the outer sapwood. Ray composition and number of rays per area were not significantly different within the studied material. However, only one Scottish tree had a significantly higher number of ray parenchyma cells per ray. The differences discovered in lignification and cell wall thickening in ray parenchyma cells early in the sapwood of Scots pine are relevant for wood utilization in general and impregnation treatments with protection agents in particular.

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Abstract

This study explores cell wall changes in Radiata pine (Pinus radiata) after modification with acetylation or furfurylation and subsequent prolonged subjection to the brown rot fungus R. placenta with the aim of better understanding the modus operandi of these two modifications. Both modifications have shown good durability in field tests, but in order to learn from their possible limitations, we used optimal environmental conditions for fungal growth, and extended the testing period compared to standard tests. Hyphae were found in acetylated wood after two weeks, and after 28 weeks of decay abundant amounts of encapsulated hyphae were present. In furfurylated wood, mass loss and a few hyphae were seen initially, but no further development was seen during weeks 18–42. The general degradation pattern was qualitatively the same for unmodified, acetylated and furfurylated wood: carbohydrates decreased relative to lignin. Acetyl groups were lost from acetylated wood during decay (earlier results), while the furan polymer did not seem to be altered by the fungus. Based on these findings it is hypothesized that modifications such as furfurylation that enhance moisture exclusion within the cell wall through impregnation polymerization offer better long term protection compared to modifications such as acetylation that depend on the replacement of hydroxyl groups with ether bound adducts that can be removed by fungi.