Blue stain and mold growth on wood can be aesthetically unappealing, but mold growth can also potentially trigger health related issues. In this study, a screening of the effect of selected natural products and derivatives of natural products including essential oils, plant based monomers, and shellfish exoskeleton compounds on the inhibition of blue stain fungi and mold fungi in southern yellow pine veneers and cellulose filter paper. The treatment of the substrates, the weight percent gain of the natural products, and the inhibition effect is presented. The natural products have been investigated previously, but most have not been applied to wood or investigated with regards to blue stain or mold growth. The specimens were treated by dipping, wrapping in foil, and then heating at 105°C for 24h in order to encourage reaction or grafting of the natural products to the wood. A selection of seven additives each exhibited significant protection against blue stain colonization in Petri dish tests and these were studied more in-depth. These included tea tree oil, propyl gallate, hydrogenated gum oil, salicylic acid, cinnamon bark oil, butylene oxide, and furfural. The salicylic acid, tea tree oil, and cinnamon bark oil had the least amount of mold growth after four weeks in the mold chamber test, and have been previously reported to have a mechanism of antifungal activity resulting from their ability to disrupt the fungal cell wall. Propyl gallate veneer was the only specimen that had a lower pH and that would be considered unfavorable to mold growth. While furfural, salicylic acid, and cinnamon bark oil treated veneers all had more hydrophobic surfaces when compared to untreated wood.

The insulation in the stator of a low voltage electric motor has a double purpose: ensuring the electric insulation around the stator wiring as well as permitting a good evacuation of the generated heat. Improving the heat transfer properties of the slot liner within the stator while maintaining its electrical insulation properties allows for more efficient electric motors. This paper presents different types of composites based on an aramid matrix with boron nitride, zinc oxide and aluminum oxide fillers. The effect of the different filler materials on the thermal conductivity and the electric insulation properties of the slot liner are presented. Perspectives on the needs for a life cycle assessment of the slot liner constituents are evoked. 

An enzymatic one-pot route in bulk was used to synthesize tetraallyl ether (tAE) functional oligomers based on divinyl adipate, 1,4-butanediol and trimethylolpropane diallyl ether. By using lipase B from Candida antarctica as catalyst and varying the stoichiometric ratio of monomers, it was possible to reach targeted molecular weights (from 1300 to 3300 g mol-1) of allyl-ether functional polyesters. The enzyme catalyzed reaction reached completion (>98% conversion based on all monomers) within 24 h at 60 °C, under reduced pressure (72 mbar) resulting in ~90% yield after filtration. The tAE-functional oligoesters were photopolymerized, without any purification other than removal of the enzyme by filtration, with thiol functional monomers (dithiol, tetrathiol) in a 1:1 ratio thiol-ene reaction. The photo-initiator, 2,2-dimethoxy-2-phenylacetophenone, was used to improve the rate of reaction under UV light. High conversions (96–99% within detection limits) were found for all thiol-ene films as determined by FT-Raman spectroscopy. The tAE-functional oligoesters were characterized by NMR, MALDI, and SEC. The UV-cured homopolymerized films and the thiol-ene films properties were characterized utilizing DSC and DMTA.

Based on largely renewable monomers, an enzymatic one-pot polycondensation route towards functional oligomers with targeted molecular weights and end-groups was developed. This one-pot synthesis was performed by combining Candida antarctica lipase B (CALB), 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), ethylene glycol, and divinyl adipate under reduced pressure (72 mbar) at 60 °C. The polymerization went to completion (>95% conversion for all monomers) within 24 h and the fraction of methacrylate end-groups was >90%. Three targeted dimethacrylate functional oligomers with molecular weights of 920, 1700 and 2500 g mol-1 (degrees of polymerization 4, 8, and 13 respectively) were synthesized. The oligomer products were characterized by NMR, MALDI-TOF MS and SEC. The dimethacrylate functional oligomers were further UV homopolymerized or combined with a tetrathiol crosslinker to demonstrate the potential to produce novel networks with tunable thermal properties dependent on chain length of the telechelic building blocks. This research is the first to demonstrate methacrylate functionalization and condensation polymerization in a one step process, which expands the growing toolbox for polymer/material chemists towards an increased throughput in available macromonomers used in material design.

The present study describes the use of an epoxy functional fatty acid, 9,10-epoxy-18-hydroxyoctadecanoic acid (EFA), extracted from birch (Betula pendula) outer bark to produce thermosets. The purified epoxy fatty acid was polymerized by enzyme-catalyzed polycondensation utilizing Candida antarctica lipase B (CalB) to form oligomers with targeted degrees of polymerization (DP) of 3, 6, and 9 and obtained DPs of 2.3, 5.9 and 7.3, respectively. It was determined that it is possible to first enzymatically polymerize and aliphatically endcap the epoxy functional fatty acid resulting in controlled oligomer lengths while also maintaining the epoxy functionality for further reaction by main-chain homo-epoxy cationic photopolymerization. The enzymatic polymerized oligomers were characterized in terms of conversion of the residual epoxy groups (FT-IR), the thermal properties (DSC, TGA) and the purity by MALDI-TOF and 1H-NMR. The amorphous thermoset films with varying degrees of crosslinking resulting from the cationically photopolymerized oligomers, were characterized in terms of their thermal properties and residual epoxy content (FT-IR ATR). The crosslinked polyesters formed insoluble, amorphous, and transparent films. This work demonstrates that thermoset films with designed properties can be effectively made with the use of forest products to reduce the petroleumbased plastics market.

The aim of this study is to better understand vegetable oils as raw materials in the application of wood protection in order to obtain improved durability of exterior wood materials in an environmentally friendly way. This was done by studying the effect of lignin model compounds on the auto-oxidation rate of methyl linoleate. The auto-oxidation process of methyl linoleate was measured by itself and in combination with 1 wt% phenolic and non-phenolic lignin model compounds at 70°C. The effect of lignin compounds on the methyl linoleate auto-oxidation process was monitored by 1H-NMR, size exclusion chromatography (SEC), and real-time infrared spectroscopy (RT-IR). It was observed that phenolic groups and radical conjugation are the main contributors to an antioxidant effect of lignin compounds on the oxidation rate of the methyl linoleate. Ferulic acid, which is phenolic and contains a carboxylic group, has the largest antioxidant effect on methyl linoleate. It was also found that the antioxidant effect existed, despite the low solubility of ferulic acid in methyl linoleate. This research demonstrates that it is possible to follow the auto-oxidation process in real time to uncover the effects of wood constituents on the fatty acid auto-oxidation process. Additionally, this knowledge that drying rate of oil can be tuned with the addition of lignin compounds can be used to predict drying times when this oil is applied to different species of wood.

This study investigates the use of eddy-current technology and impedance spectroscopy in sensing the change in rubber properties after it is exposed to accelerated thermal aging. The thermal aging process, by application of temperature and pressure over time, of ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubbers containing both carbon black (CB) and graphene are investigated. Both eddy-current sensing and electrical impedance measurement techniques were used for electromagnetic analysis. Both methods measure the in- and out-of-phase responses as a function of excitation frequency at room temperature. The measurements were performed before and after the aging process. The electrical percolation threshold was detected in the rubber samples by varying the CB content from 0 to 40 wt%. In the rubber sample containing 30 wt% CB, 0–5 wt% of the CB was replaced with graphene flakes. The substitution of graphene for CB in the EPDM rubber formulation provided an enhanced eddy-current and electrical impedance response. The findings demonstrate the feasibility of employing electromagnetic analysis techniques to investigate the extent of aging.

The objective of this study was to modify highly insulative and lightweight biorenewable foam thermosets to be semi-conductive for primarily building material applications. The foams were formed and then post-treated with in-situ polymerization of polyaniline, both doped and undoped, adsorbing and possibly absorbing (observed by SEM-EDX) to the foam structure at levels of 100–120 wt%.

The modified tannin foams were shown to be semi-conductive in comparison to the highly insulative structure prior to polyaniline modification. While the 50% protonated polyaniline modified foams, or doped foams, had a higher conductivity than the undoped polyaniline modified foams, the acid used in fabrication of the foams provided some degree of conductivity to the undoped PANI modified foams. Moreover, the modified foams had an increased volume of 15% after modification, were more sensitive to moisture, and the polyaniline did not affect the degradation temperature of the foams.

New wood protection technologies should be effective against biodeterioration and at the same time minimize environmental impact. The present study investigates the effect of polyanilinemodification of wood and the effect of a pulsed electric field on fungal protection. The effect of fungi and a pulsed electric field on the conductivity of the modified wood was also measured. It was found that it is possible to polymerize polyaniline particles in-situ homogeneously throughout the wood specimens. The polyaniline particles themselves were not found to be anti-fungal, however when in contact with water they affected the pH drastically and inhibited fungal growth. The wood treatment with polyaniline and the connection to a pulsed electric fieldwere found to be effective in protecting the wood from deterioration when exposed to Postia placenta. The unmodified samples that were connected to a pulsed electric field lost under 10wt% due to fungal degradation. The combination of polyaniline treatment with the connection to a pulsed electric field showed a slight synergistic effect which resulted in less weight loss due to fungal degradation. However, a more brittle wood structure was observed.Leached and fungal exposed samples showed a significant drop in the conductivity, indicating that the network has broken down slightly. 

The current study demonstrates that methacrylate and acrylate poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) functional oligomers can be effectively impregnated into wood blocks, and cured efficiently to high conversions without catalyst by e-beam radiation, allowing for less susceptibility to leaching, and favourable properties including higher Brinell hardness values. PEG based monomers were chosen because there is a long history of this water soluble monomer being able to penetrate the cell wall, thus bulking it and decreasing the uptake of water which further protects the wood from fungal attack. Diacrylate, dimethacrylate, and dihydroxyl functional PEG of Mw 550-575, of concentrations 0, 30, 60, and 100 wt% in water, were vacuum pressure impregnated into Scots Pine blocks of 15 x 25 x 50 mm in an effort to bulk the cell wall. The samples were then irradiated and compared with non-irradiated samples. It was shown by IR, DSC that the acrylate polymers were fully cured to much higher conversions than can be reached with conventional methods. Leaching studies indicated a much lower amount of oligomer loss from the cured vinyl functional PEG chains in comparison to hydroxyl functional PEG indicating a high degree of fastening of the polymer in the wood. The Brinell hardness indicated a significant increase in hardness to hardwood levels in the modified samples compared to the samples of hydroxyl functional PEG and un-cured vinyl PEG samples which actually became softer than the untreated Scots Pine. By monitoring the dimensions of the sample it was found by weight percent gain calculations (WPG %) that water helps to swell the wood structure and allow better access of the oligomers into the cell wall. Further, the cure shrinkage of the wood samples demonstrated infiltration of the oligomers into the cell wall as this was not observed for methyl methacrylate which is well documented to remain in the lumen. However, dimensional stability of the vinyl polymer modified blocks when placed in water was not observed to the same extent as PEG.

This study presents a promising method to make three-dimensional lattices of structured nanomaterials by using wood templates for in situ (confined) directed growth of inorganic material in the ordered cell walls. The wood was impregnated by transition metal ion precursors (iron, manganese and cobalt) at 5 bars pressure that were further transformed into magnetic particles (Fe 3O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe 2O4) by addition of alkaline solutions. It was found that by this method, it was possible to produce lightweight ferromagnetic functionalized wood materials in an inexpensive and environmentally friendly way. It was possible to functionalise the wood throughout the structure with a high weight percent of particles from 15-20 wt% as observed by TGA. These were not only adsorbed to the surface of the lumen, but also found by SEM-EDX throughout the cell wall and middle lamella and in higher amounts in early wood. The magnetic properties were nearly unaffected by the incorporation into the wood samples as compared to powder compacts obtained as particles that precipitated separately in the impregnation solution, both for soft and hard magnetic materials. Whereas the hard magnetic phase CoFe2O 4 showed insignificant leaching, the soft magnetic Fe 3O4, MnFe2O4 lost around 50 wt% during repeated washing in deionized water, suggesting that the CoFe 2O4 particles were more readily attached in the structure of the wood. The crystal structure of the magnetic particles was determined to be the same in the wood structure as those formed in solution.

A structural battery is a multifunctional battery that can carry a load while storing energy. Structural batteries have been a cutting-edge research focus in the last decade and are mainly based on polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-carbon fibers (CFs). In this work, positive electrodes based on PAN-carbon fibers were manufactured with powder impregnation (siphon impregnation) technique using a water-based slurry containing lithium iron phosphate (LFP) as the active electrode material and the water-soluble binder polyethylene glycol (PEG). Different coating compositions, electrode-drying temperatures, and coating parameters were investigated to optimize the coating uniformity and the electrochemical performances. Scanning electron microscopy results showed that the electrode materials coat the CFs uniformly, conformably, and individually. Electrochemical characterization of pouch cells shows that the electrodes containing 6 wt% PEG dried at 140 °C have the best battery performance, delivering a first discharge capacity of 151 mAh g−1 and capacity retention higher than 80% after 100 cycles. Moreover, excellent capacity reversibility was achieved when the electrodes were cycled at multiple C-rates attesting to their stability. The results demonstrate that CFs perform excellently as current collectors in positive electrodes. 

This study centers on investigating the influence of conductive additives, carbon black (Super P) and graphene, within the context of LiFePO4 (LFP)-impregnated carbon fibers (CFs) produced using the powder impregnation method. The performance of these additives was subject to an electrochemical evaluation. The findings reveal that there are no substantial disparities between the two additives at lower cycling rates, highlighting their adaptability in conventional energy storage scenarios. However, as cycling rates increase, graphene emerges as the better performer. At a rate of 1.5C in a half-cell versus lithium, electrodes containing graphene exhibited a discharge capacity of 83 mAhgLFP−1; those with Super P and without any additional conductive additive showed a capacity of 65 mAhgLFP−1 and 48 mAhgLFP−1, respectively. This distinction is attributed to the structural and conductivity advantages inherent to graphene, showing its potential to enhance the electrochemical performance of structural batteries. Furthermore, LFP-impregnated CFs were evaluated in full cells versus pristine CFs, yielding relatively similar results, though with a slightly improved outcome observed with the graphene additive. These results provide valuable insights into the role of conductive additives in structural batteries and their responsiveness to varying operational conditions, underlining the potential for versatile energy storage solutions. © 2024 The Authors