Beech wood treated with polyglycerol succinate: a new effective method for its protection and stabilization

This paper deals with an original and non-biocidal chemical treatment consisting of a vacuum/pressure impregnation step of beech wood with a water-borne mixture made from heat-activated condensation of succinic anhydride (SA) and glycerol (G). Chemical structures of adducts were established using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectroscopy (MALDI-TOF) investigations. Beech wood was impregnated and cured in order to induce in situ polymerization of glycerol/succinic adducts (GSA) in the cell walls, leading to the formation of polyglycerol succinate (PGS) polyester. Various treatment conditions were investigated depending on the duration (6–72 h) and curing temperature (103– 160°C). Weight percent gains (WPGs) ranging between 40 and 60% were obtained. Attenuated total reflectancemiddle infrared spectroscopy (ATR-MIR) and carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance (13C-NMR) spectroscopy confirmed polyester formation. A curing temperature of 160°C was found to be the best condition to totally avoid polymer leaching, and brought the anti-swelling efficiency (ASE) up to 64%. Decay resistance of PGS-treated wood against Trametes versicolor and Coniophora puteana was also strongly temperature and time dependent: performances fit with the EN113 standard requirements if a curing temperature of 160C was applied.