Relationship of selected cell characteristics and colour of silver birch wood after two different drying processes

Abstract

Change in the colour of silver birch wood is a serious problem in the mechanical wood industry. Here, colour was correlated with microscopic characteristics of wood, such as cell types and dimensions, by drying processes. In conventional drying, with lower temperature than in vacuum drying used here, the most important factor causing darkened wood was wide latewood. In vacuum drying, thickness of the vessel walls affected wood darkening, as did broad rays and large amount of axial parenchyma. Axial and terminal parenchyma cells contained very small amounts of phenolics, but after drying at elevated temperature, a thin dark layer could be observed on the innerside of their walls. Phenolics were abundant in ray parenchyma; these compounds darkened at elevated temperatures, less in conventional drying than in vacuum drying. Phenolics were observed only inside cells, mainly in the parenchyma, but in vacuum-dried wood also in fibres and vessels. Anatomical characteristics are known to be affected by both environmental and genetic factors. Thus it might be possible to influence the colour reaction of birch wood during the drying process by choosing wood according to growing-site conditions, or by choosing the seed source for birch plantations according to given anatomical characteristics.     

Relationship of selected cell characteristics and colour of silver birch wood after two different drying processes

Change in the colour of silver birch wood is a serious problem in the mechanical wood industry. Here, colour was correlated with microscopic characteristics of wood, such as cell types and dimensions, by drying processes. In conventional drying, with lower temperature than in vacuum drying used here, the most important factor causing darkened wood was wide latewood. In vacuum drying, thickness of the vessel walls affected wood darkening, as did broad rays and large amount of axial parenchyma. Axial and terminal parenchyma cells contained very small amounts of phenolics, but after drying at elevated temperature, a thin dark layer could be observed on the innerside of their walls. Phenolics were abundant in ray parenchyma; these compounds darkened at elevated temperatures, less in conventional drying than in vacuum drying. Phenolics were observed only inside cells, mainly in the parenchyma, but in vacuum-dried wood also in fibres and vessels. Anatomical characteristics are known to be affected by both environmental and genetic factors. Thus it might be possible to influence the colour reaction of birch wood during the drying process by choosing wood according to growing-site conditions, or by choosing the seed source for birch plantations according to given anatomical characteristics.     

Physical and mechanical properties and colour changes of fast-growing Gympie messmate wood subjected to two-step steam-heat treatments

This study aimed to evaluate physical and mechanical properties and colour changes of fast-growing Gympie messmate wood subjected to two-step steam-heat treatments. To achieve this, Gympie messmate wood was thermally treated under different conditions. Combined steam (127°C and ～0,1471 MPa) and heat treatments in an oven (180–240°C for 4 hours) were performed. Physical and mechanical properties were evaluated by weight loss, equilibrium moisture content, specific gravity, volumetric and linear swelling and static bending tests, while colour changes were studied using CIEL*a*b* technique. The main findings showed that the steam pre-treatment in autoclave influenced most of the technological properties evaluated, mainly for heat treatments performed in low temperatures (180–200°C). The most significant changes after thermal treatments were observed for dimensional stability, which increased as a function of temperature of treatment. On the other hand, mechanical strength of thermally modified wood was significantly affected, while stiffness did not change. Colour modifications due to the application of two-step steam-heat treatments confirm the possibility to using these samples for aesthetic purposes.     

Ectomycorrhizal colonisation of roots and ash granules in a spruce forest treated with granulated wood ash

Granulated wood ash has been proposed as a slow release fertiliser suitable for forest soils. In this study ectomycorrhizal colonisation of roots and ash granules was studied in a 40-year-old spruce forest treated with 0, 3 or 6 t ha⁻¹ granulated wood ash. We used PCR-RFLP methods for ITS-typing and identification of ectomycorrhizal fungi. In total 20 different ITS-types were recognised on roots in the organic soil horizon. Five of these were identified to species and two to genus. Six species, Tylospora fibrillosa Donk, Cortinarius sp. 3, Piloderma sp. 1, and three unidentified ITS-types (Ve-95-1, Tö-95-3 and Ve-95-9) each occurred on over 5% of the total root tips analysed. Together these comprised 55% of the ectomycorrhizal community on the screened roots.

Ash granules collected from the fertilised plots were normally colonised by fungal mycelia. PCR-RFLP analysis of these mycelia revealed the presence of four ITS-types. Three of these (Piloderma sp. 1, Ha-96-3 and Tor-97-1) were also present on the mycorrhizal roots. Piloderma sp. 1 was the most abundant species colonising roots. A possible role of ectomycorrhizal mycelia in the direct mobilisation of nutrients from ash granules is discussed.     

Effect of thermal modification temperature on the mechanical properties,dimensional stability,and biological durability of black spruce (Picea mariana)

This study was aimed at evaluating the effect of thermal modification temperature on the mechanical properties, dimensional stability, and biological durability of Picea mariana. The boards were thermally modified at different temperatures 190, 200 and 210 °C. The results indicated that the thermal modification of wood caused a significant decrease in the modulus of rupture (MOR) after 190 °C, while the modulus of elasticity (MOE) seemed less affected with a slight increase up to 200 °C and slight decrease with further increase in temperature. The hardness of the thermally modified wood increased in the axial direction. This increase was also observed in tangential and axial directions but at a lesser extent. The final value was slightly higher in axial direction and lower in radial and tangential directions compared to those of the untreated wood. Dimensional stability improved with thermal modification in the three directions compared to the dimensional stability of unmodified wood. The fungal degradation results showed that the decay resistance of thermally modified wood against the wood-rotting fungi Trametes versicolor and Gloephyllum trabeum improved compared to that of the untreated wood. By contrast, the thermal modification of P. mariana had a limited effect on the degradation caused by the fungus Poria placenta.     

Effects of slash retention and wood ash addition on fine root biomass and production and fungal mycelium in a Norway spruce stand in SW Sweden

In the study reported here we examined the short-term effects (1–3 years) of slash retention (SR) and the long-term effects (13–15 years) of wood-ash application (A) on fine roots and mycorrhizae in a 40-year-old Norway spruce forest in southwest Sweden. Soil cores were used to obtain estimates of the biomass (g m⁻²) of roots in three diameter classes (<0.5, 0.5–1 and 1–2 mm), root length density (RLD), specific root length (SRL) and mycorrhizal root tip density (RTD). Fine root (<1 mm) length production and mortality, and mycelium production, were estimated using minirhizotron and mesh bag techniques, respectively. Compared with the control plots (C), the biomass of fine roots in diameter classes <0.5 mm and 0.5–1 mm was significantly higher in A plots, but lower in SR plots. In addition, RLD was significantly lower in the humus layer of SR plots than in the humus layers of C and A plots, but not in the other layers. None of the treatments affected the SRL. In all soil layers, the SR treatment resulted in significant reductions in the number of ectomycorrhizal root tips, and the mycelia production of fungi in mesh bags, relative to the C treatment, but the C and A treatments induced no significant changes in these variables. Fine root length production in the C, A and SR plots amounted to 94, 87 and 70 mm tube⁻¹ during the 2003 growing season, respectively. Fine root mortality in treated plots did not change over the course of the study. We suggest that leaving logging residues on fertile sites may result in nitrogen mineralisation, which may in turn induce reductions in root biomass, and both root and mycelium production, and consequently affect nutrient uptake and the accumulation of organic carbon in soil derived from roots and mycorrhizae.     

Modelling of pH effects and CIE L*a*b*colour spaces of beech wood-inhabiting fungi by NIRS

A combination of statistical techniques of analyses were used to evaluate the potential of International Commission on Illumination (CIE) lightness (L*), redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) colour space system and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to assess surface changes in relation with progressive decay of beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) by wood-inhabiting lignicolous fungi Inonotus hispidus, Trametes versicolor and Xylaria polymorpha. pH effects based modelling predictions of beech earlywood and latewood tissues were also included. Multivariate analysis techniques included response surface optimization, sample-specific standard error of prediction (SEP) method and projection to latent structures partial least squares (PLS) regression. Strong statistical relationships were derived for pH predictions with R² values ranged: from 0.77 to 0.84 for I. hispidus; from 0.77 to 0.84 for T. versicolor and from 0.83 to 0.91 for X. polymorpha. R² values for CIE-based L*a*b* colour space measurements ranged: from 0.43 to 0.69 (L*), 0.66 to 0.76 (a*), 0.42 to 0.53 (b*) for I. hispidus; from 0.59 to 0.69 (L*), 0.69 to 0.79 (a*), 0.64 to 0.79 (b*) for T. versicolor; and from 0.51 to 0.75 (L*), 0.89 to 0.94 (a*), 0.85 to 0.89 (b*) for X. polymorpha. Multivariate technical analysis (response surface analysis, sample-specific SEP, PLS regression) of CIE L*a*b* system and NIRS results should be able to characterize pH effects and surface changes of wood spalted by lignicolous fungi as a quick and reliable non-destructive method relevant to wood-spalting concerns and the forest products industry.