Surface deterioration of wood-flour polypropylene composites by weathering trials

The market for wood-fiber plastic composites (WPCs) is expanding rapidly in many countries including Japan, where WPCs are mainly used for exterior products. In such applications, WPCs undergo undesirable color change, chalking, and shrinkage and swelling, and accordingly there is a need to better understand the mechanisms responsible for the weathering of WPC and develop methods of improving their weathering resistance. In this study, weatherability of WPC was assessed by natural and accelerated weathering trials. Discoloration (whitening) of WPC during exposure was caused by degradation of both wood and plastic. Darker color pigments as additives improved the color stability of WPC; however, chalking on the surfaces still occurred. The color stability of WPC was improved by application of exterior coatings. Preweathering of WPC (before coatings were applied) increased the absorption of coatings by the WPC and had a positive effect on the color stability and prevented chalking of the composites. Parts of this study were presented at the IUFRO XXII World Congress Meeting, Brisbane, August 2005 and the IAWPS 2005, Yokohama, November 2005     

Protection and fastness of green color of moso bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens Mazel) treated with chromium-based reagents

The attractive green color of moso bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens Mazel) culms fades without chemical treatment. Chromated copper arsenate (CCA) has been used to protect the green color of bamboo, but CCA is harmful to factory workers and the environment. To overcome the toxicity of arsenic in CCA, two chromium-based formulas developed by the authors, chromated copper phosphate (CCP) and chromated phosphate (CP), were evaluated for their protection of the green color of moso bamboo. The results revealed that bamboo treated with CP had a greener color than those treated with CCA or CCP. The concentration, treatment time, and CrO₃/H₃PO₄ ratio in CP solution greatly affected the color of moso bamboo culms. The attractive green color, which resembles the color of fresh-cut moso bamboo, was obtained by treating bamboo with 2% CP solution at 60°C for 3h, using a 11 CrO₃/H₃PO₄ ratio in aqueous solution. In addition, the CP-treated moso bamboo exhibited excellent green color fastness in both accelerated ultraviolet lightfastness testing and outdoor weathering exposure.     

Coating performance on glutaraldehyde-modified wood

Scots pine(Pinus sylvestris L.) panels were modified with glutaraldehyde(GA) to various weight percent gains and subsequently coated with several commercial coatings. The drying rate and adhesion of the coatings on the modified wood were measured; the coated/modified woods were exposed outdoors to analyze how the wood modifications influence the coating deterioration. The results showed that GA modification caused an increase in the drying rate of the waterborne coatings, but had no influence on drying of tested solvent-borne coatings. GAmodification did not change the dry adhesion but reduced the wood strength in a pull-off test. Wet adhesion of waterborne coatings was improved, while that of the solvent-borne coatings tended to be somewhat reduced. During 22 months of outdoor weathering, the coated/modified samples exhibited lower moisture content than the coated/unmodified samples, but GA modification didn't contribute a substantially synergistic effect with surface coatings on resistance to weathering.     

豇豆收获前后种子劣变的抗性研究

不同豇豆种质在种子形成过程中对不良自然环境的适应能力和贮藏抗性不同,严重制约着豇豆优质种子生产和推广。了解豇豆品种的田间抗劣变能力,对指导新品种选育、种子生产和品种推广具有十分重要的意义。本研究采用甲醇胁迫法和温箱蚀化法对5 份豇豆种质进行收获前和收获后种子劣变的鉴定。综合各项指标的检测结果发现：‘丰豇十号’种质适应性差,气候对其生长影响较大,不适宜大面积推广。‘大润发’和‘丰豇青优’综合表现最佳,对气候的适应较强,适合大面积推广。     

不同粒级煤矸石风化物矿质元素的含量变化及风化程度分析

以抚顺矿区汪良排土场、东排土场和西排土场为研究对象,选择荒草地类型区进行采样,研究了不同粒级煤矸石风化物矿质元素含量的变化,并对不同粒级煤矸石风化物成壤指标进行了测定。结果表明,随煤矸石风化物堆积年限的增加,SiO2,Al2O3和Fe2O3的含量在不同粒级间变化不大,K2O,Na2O,CaO,MgO的含量变化明显;由各个成壤指标来看,煤矸石堆积物的风化程度随堆积年限的增长和粒级的减小而增强。     

三峡库区土壤元素分布特征及其发生学意义

选取三峡库区万州段具有代表性母岩和土壤作为研究样点,测定了土壤和母岩中Si、Al、Fe、K、Mg、Ca、Na等几种风化成土元素的含量,探讨了土壤元素分布特征及其发生学意义。研究表明:母岩元素平均含量顺序为:Si>Al>Fe>K>Mg>Ca>Na,其中Fe、Ca、Mg、Na、K高于中国和世界元素背景值,而Al介于中国和世界元素背景值之间,Si的平均含量则低于背景值;灰岩区上的土壤中,Ca、Mg、K元素最高,砂岩母质区的土壤风化素含量较低;而碎屑岩类中,泥岩区土壤风化元素相对较高,粉砂岩区土壤风化元素含量介于泥岩与砂岩区之间;母岩的淋失强度为Ca>Mg>Al>Si>K>Fe>Na,Na元素的迁移程度小,是由于母岩中Na元素对土壤的不断补充。因此以土壤中风化元素含量为基础计算的风化指标,难以反映亚热带温暖潮湿地区的成土风化过程,常用的土壤分子硅铝率和硅铁铝率也不能指示所有土壤的风化成土作用程度,只适用于判断风化初期或成土作用早期。     

Mineralization rate of C-labelled dissolved organic matter from leaf litter in soils of a weathering chronosequence

During the processes of primary succession and soil development, large stocks of organic C with very long residence times accumulate in many soils. Soluble organic C adsorbed by soils may contribute to the stock of organic C accumulating during soil development. We determined whether the mineralization rate of water-soluble organic C and the insoluble residue from ¹⁴C-labelled leaf litter added to soils from a weathering chronosequence decrease as soil age and adsorption capacity increase. The soils were formed on mudflows of andesitic material deposited about 75, 255, 616 y ago, and another older but undetermined time before this study. The percentage of the DOC adsorbed by the soils increased with age. After 1 year of incubation there were no significant differences in the mineralization rates of DOC added to soils of different ages. The DOC appeared to be comprised of two fractions, one that comprises about 32% of the total that mineralized with a half decay time of 0.02 y (7 d) and a second fraction comprising 68% with a half decay time of about 1.6 y. Consequently, the slowly mineralized fraction of the soluble C contributed to the accumulation of slowly mineralized C in the soil. Both the slowly and rapidly mineralized fractions of the insoluble residue decomposed more slowly than the corresponding fractions in DOC. We found no support for the idea that increased adsorption capacity due to weathering resulted in protection of soluble organic C from microbial mineralization.     

Effect of Bacillus subtilis on granite weathering: A laboratory experiment

We performed a comparative experiment to investigate: (1) how the ubiquitous soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis weathers granite; and (2) which granite-forming minerals weather more rapidly via biological processes. Batch system experiments (granite specimen in a 500 ml solution including NaCl, glucose, yeast extract and bacteria B. subtilis at 27 °C) were carried out for 30 days. Granite surfaces were observed by SEM before and after the experiment. B. subtilis had a strong influence on granite weathering by forming pits. There were 2.4 times as many pits and micropores were 2.3 times wider in granite exposed to B. subtilis when compared with bacteria-free samples. B. subtilis appear to preferentially select an optimum place to adhere to the mineral and dissolve essential elements from the mineral to live. Plagioclase was more vulnerable to bacterial weathering than biotite among the granite composing minerals.     

Rates of chemical weathering of porous rhyolites: 5-year measurements using the weight-loss method

To examine the rate of chemical weathering, field experiments using microweight-loss techniques were carried out. Two kinds of porous rhyolite forming lava domes in Kozu-shima Island were selected: (1) a younger rock (weathering period is 2.6 ka) and (2) an older rock (20 ka). Both rocks seem to have been very similar in their initial composition and structure. They have, however, different properties in the present depending on the difference in weathering period. Rock tablets of these rhyolites with a diameter of 3.5 cm and a thickness of about 1 cm were enclosed in a nylon mesh bag and placed in a soil–bedrock interface on a hillslope of central Japan for over 5 years. The younger rock has a lower weight loss by about 0.5%, and the older rock has a higher weight loss of 3% to 5%. These results show that older rock has a higher rate of chemical weathering than in younger rock. This supports Oguchi et al.'s (Oguchi, T.C., Hatta, T., Matsukura, Y., 1994. Changes in rock properties of porous rhyolite through 40,000 years in Kozu-shima Island, Japan. Geogr. Rev. Jpn. 67A, 775–793 (in Japanese, with English Abstr.); Oguchi, T.C., Hatta, T., Matsukura, Y., 1999. Weathering rates over 40,000 years based on changes in rock properties of porous rhyolite. Phys. Chem. Earth (A) 24, 861–870.) finding that the rate of change in chemical properties appears to accelerate with weathering time.