The Resistance of Wood Chemically Modified with Isocyanates. Part 1. Brown Rot, White Rot and Acid Chlorite Delignification
Summary This study was to assess the bioprotectant performance of chemical modification with three different isocyanates (n-butyl, hexyl and 1,6-diisocyanatohexane, BuNCO, HeNCO and HDI respectively) in Corsican pine (Pinus nigra Schneid) sapwood. Wood-isocyanate bond formation was verified by the increase in sample weight, volume and by infra-red spectroscopy. Basidiomycete (Coniophora puteana, Gloeophyllum trabeum, Coriolus versicolor, Pycnoporus sanguineus) decay tests demonstrated protection by chemical modification. The relationships of fungal species, weight percent gain (WPG), and decay induced weight loss were examined. One of the brown rot fungi, C. puteana, showed higher threshold protection values than the other fungi tested and the diisocyanate showed better performance. Chemical characteristics of the sound and brown rotted wood (C. puteana) have been examined using sulphuric acid and sodium chlorite procedures to clarify the principles which govern isocyanate modifications and restrict fungal decay. These demonstrated that appreciable wood protection against C. puteana only occurred when the holocellulose fraction showed substantial changes due to chemical modification.