Teak (Tectona grandis) has been popularly known in the wood industry as a precious material due to its natural dimensional stability. To explore the main components affecting the dimensional stability of teak wood, the teak wood samples were extracted with different polar solvents, and the extractives were impregnated into rubberwood specimens to determine their effect on the dimensional stability of the modified rubberwood. The results showed that the methanol extractives of the teak wood exhibited the most significant effect on the dimensional stability of the rubberwood. The extractives were characterized by infrared (IR) and gas chromatograph/ mass spectrum (GC/MS). The GC/MS results showed that the methanol extractives primarily contained 9,10-anthracenedione, 1,1-dimethyl-3,4-bis(1-methylethenyl), and alcohol compounds. It was speculated that the alcohol compounds in the methanol extractives reacted with polar hydroxyl groups in the cell wall, which resulted in a decrease in the size of the site combined with bound water. Moreover, the hydrophobic hydrocarbon compound was impregnated into rubberwood to form a thin layer of protective film in the cells into which the water could not enter under 20 °C and 80% RH.

To evaluate the effects of chemical changes during thermal modification on the resistance of wood against photodegradation, heat-treated specimens of rubber wood (Hevea brasiliensis) were exposed to ultraviolet light for 384 h. The color changes in the exposed wood surfaces were analyzed using a colorimeter; the chemical changes were monitored using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The photoweathering performances of rubber wood treated at 155 °C for 2 h, 155 °C for 6 h, and 185 °C for 2 h were similar to that of untreated wood, as the lignin did not undergo profound chemical transformation under mild modification conditions. However, compared to untreated rubber wood, the photoaging performances of rubber wood treated at 185 °C for 6 h and 215 °C for 2 h were notably changed. The transformation process was confirmed by FTIR. A good linear relationship between color change and lignin degradation was observed after mild, but not severe, heat treatment. The concentration of carbonyl groups in the wood specimens generally increased during photoaging, although not all samples showed a good correlation between color change and the concentration of carbonyl groups. Only the photochromic performance of wood changed notably when lignin was extensively modified under severe heat-treatment conditions.

Heat treatment was an eco-friendly modification technology for rubberwood, without the addition of chemical reagents into the wood and wood performance has been improved remarkably. Many effluents are generated from heat-treated rubberwood process, which were rarely researched. The effluents contain relatively high content of volatile organic compounds, which may seriously threaten the environment and human health. In this study, effluents condensated during different heat-treated stages (125 ℃, 145 ℃, 175 ℃, 185 ℃, 215 ℃) and frequently used industrial heat treatment production technology (185 ℃/3 h, 215 ℃/3 h) were characterized by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The effluents were classified as aldehydes, phenols, esters, ketones, acids, alcohols, alkanes, anhydride, aromatics and compounds released the most during all heat-treated stages were aldehydes. With the temperature increased, the relative amounts of aldehydes decreased, while the ketones, esters and aromatics increased under acidic constituents (pH ranged from 4.17 to 2.47) and high moisture condition. The vanillin and coniferyl aldehyde accounted for much higher proportion in the aldehydes. The mass loss of rubberwood was larger under 215 ℃/3 h (16.61%), correspondingly the effluents had more kinds of compounds at 215 ℃. These results would provide guidance for research of effluent disposal and transform biomass residues into valuable things.

In this study, cellulose nanofibers (CNF) were obtained by chemical pretreatment using a rubberwood substrate. Different forms of drying were used to prepare three CNF film variants. Each of the films was rehydrated and hot-pressed to introduce more hydrogen bonds, and the films were characterized in terms of density and porosity, micromorphology, and mechanical properties. The mechanical properties of the films improved substantially after rehydration and hot-press drying. The tensile strengths of the films increased to approximately two to three times that of the original CNF films. These results with micromorphological observations suggest that adjusting the water content during CNF drying can significantly improve the formation of 3D networks in the films, thus imparting higher hydrogen bonding content to the films and improving the mechanical properties of the substrates. This study provides a theoretical basis for the formation of high-strength materials through water molecule-induced assembly and broadens the application of biomass cellulose materials in emerging fields.