The use of both naturally occurring and synthetic pigmented wood has been prevalent in woodcraft for centuries. Modern manifestations generally involve either woodworkers’ aniline dyes, or pigments derived from a special class of fungi known as spalting fungi. While fungal pigments are more renewable than anilines and pose less of an environmental risk, the carrier required for these pigments—dichloromethane (DCM)—is both problematic for humans and tends to only deposit the pigments on the surface of wood instead of evenly within the material. Internal coloration of wood is key to adoption of a pigmenting system by woodworkers. To address this issue, five solvents that had moderate solubility with the pigments extracted from Chlorociboria aeruginosa and Scytalidium cuboideum were identified, in the hopes that a reduction in solubility would result in a greater amount of the pigment deposited inside the wood. Of the tested solvents, acetonitrile was found to produce the highest internal color in ash, Douglas-fir, madrone, mountain hemlock, Port-Orford cedar, Pacific silver fir, red alder and sugar maple. While these carrier solvents are not ideal for extracting the pigments from the fungi, acetonitrile in particular does appear to allow for more pigment to be deposited within wood. The use of acetonitrile over DCM offers new opportunities for possible industrial spalting applications, in which larger pieces of wood could be uniformly pigmented and sold to the end user in larger quantities than are currently available with spalted wood.

Spalted wood, wood colored by fungi, has been popular in woodcraft for centuries. Most spalted wood, however, is found in an advanced state of decay and cannot be utilized. This project describes the use of viscoelastic thermal compression (VTC) to investigate the potential increase in spalted woods’ strength and stiffness, with the main objective of converting so-called “punky” wood into the top layer (veneer layer or “coating”) on commercial flooring. Spalted Acer macrophyllum logs were cut into veneers of size 7 mm × 7.8 cm × 25 cm and were then VTC-treated at 150 °C and 50 psi for 11.5 min. Statistical analysis on the mixed linear models showed significant increases for both the density and hardness of spalted wood (p < 0.0001). Density and Brinell hardness increased by 84% and 209%, respectively. FTIR analysis revealed that the wood polymers present in spalted wood were more susceptible to degradation imposed by the heat of the VTC treatment compared to sound wood. Additionally, the color analysis of the wood specimens showed statistically significant changes in color after the VTC treatment (p < 0.0001), which turned the wood surface darker and redder. The use of the VTC technology to transform spalted wood into wood flooring is viable. However, when exposed to moisture, the VTC-treated spalted wood showed a high percentage of set recovery (78%), which was significantly different from the set recovery of the sound wood (71%, p = 0.004). Successful use of VTC-treated spalted wood for flooring will require addressing of the swelling issue, and additional studies are needed to fully characterize the anatomy of VTC-treated spalted wood.

Currently, with the rationalization of consumption of raw materials due to energy constraints and possible damage to the environment , it has tried to maximize their employability . The forestry - wood sector is largely responsible for the generation of waste , which must be allocated appropriately to not lead to environmental damage. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the acoustical panels made of plaster embedded with cellulose fibers from a pulp and paper company of the Paulista West . The evaluation was made based on the sound absorption material, resulting in sound absorption coefficients at around X, according to values found in literature.

The aim of this work was the study of embedment strength of dowels in reforested wood pieces. Analytical and experimental approaches were considered. Specimens for testing were made of Pinus elliottii (C30) and Eucalyptus saligna (C50) wood with steel rods with diameter of 6.35 mm (1/4"). The tests were performed according to the recommendations of ABNT NBR 7190:1997 and ASTM D5764:2007 Standards with subsequent comparison between the analytical and experimental results for embedment strength in the parallel and perpendicular directions to the grain. The results showed that the analytical and experimental values for embedment strength according to American Standard presented closer to each other compared to the Brazilian Standard in this case. Moreover, the American Standard recommended test specimen dimensions, which facilitate the manufacture, especially in the direction perpendicular the to wood fibers.Keywords: Standardization, experimental tests, analytical models. ABNT NBR 7190:1997 RESUMEN El objetivo de este trabajo fue estudiar la resistencia al aplastamiento de pernos de acero en cuerpos de pruebas de madera de reforestación. Dos enfoques principales han sido considerados: analítico y experimental. Las muestras para los ensayos estaban hechas de madera de Pinus elliottii (C30) y Eucalyptus saligna (C50) y los pernos de acero común con 6,35 mm (1/4") de diámetro. Los ensayos se realizaron de acuerdo con las recomendaciones de las normas