Pinewood was modified by vacuum impregnation with various aqueous lignin solutions of low concentration (0.5-1.0%) and its decay resistance was tested by the standard procedure EN 113. Five lignin types were tested against three brown rot and one white rot fungi. The bio-durability of wood was considerably increased by the treatment. The highest effect of modification was for alkali, kraft, hydrolysis lignins and industrial lignosulfonate, when mass losses of wood for brown-rot fungi were negligible. The effect of the modification with certified lignosulfonates was insignificant. Chemical analysis revealed that phenols, which are leached from lignin and are adsorbed by wood in the impregnation process, could act as a biocide. The hydrophilic properties of wood either did not change (certified lignins) or were enhanced because of some change in the pore structure (industrial lignins). Further tests are needed to verify the positive effects of this technologically simple and environmentally friendly treatment.

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In our study, early period degradation (10 days) of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) sapwood by the brown-rot fungus Coniophora puteana (Schum.: Fr.) Karst. (BAM Ebw.15) was followed at the wood chemical composition and ultrastructure-level, and highlighted the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). An advanced decay period of 50 days was chosen for comparison of the degradation dynamics. Scanning UV microspectrophotometry (UMSP) analyses of lignin distribution in wood cells revealed that the linkages of lignin and polysaccharides were already disrupted in the early period of fungal attack. An increase in the lignin absorption A(280) value from 0.24 (control) to 0.44 in decayed wood was attributed to its oxidative modification which has been proposed to be generated by Fenton reaction derived ROS. The wood weight loss in the initial degradation period was 2%, whilst cellulose and lignin content decreased by 6.7% and 1%, respectively. Lignin methoxyl (-OCH3) content decreased from 15.1% (control) to 14.2% in decayed wood. Diffuse reflectance Fourier-transform infrared (DRIFT) spectroscopy corroborated the moderate loss in the hemicellulose and lignin degradation accompanying degradation. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectra and spin trapping confirmed the generation of ROS, such as hydroxyl radicals (HO∙), in the early wood degradation period. Our results showed that irreversible changes in wood structure started immediately after wood colonisation by fungal hyphae and the results generated here will assist in the understanding of the biochemical mechanisms of wood biodegradation by brown-rot fungi with the ultimate aim of developing novel wood protection methods.