Sigrun Kolstad

Lead Engineer

(+47) 468 92 375
sigrun.kolstad@nibio.no

Place
Ås H8

Visiting address
Høgskoleveien 8, 1433 Ås

Abstract

The use of wood in outdoor constructions has long traditions in Norway. In the last decade, the environmentally demands for wood protective systems has become stricter. At the same time, new design solutions are arising that will challenge the decay protection in outdoor constructions. In this article, the potential for antioxidants as a wood protective agent was tested. Both natural and synthetic antioxidants have been used. All samples achieved a sufficient uptake of impregnation agent, and all the tested products showed a reduction in wood decay rate compared to the control. The protections by the antioxidants are more effective against brown rot fungi, than white rot fungi. The synthetic antioxidants stop the fungal degradation of the brown rot fungi, and should be considered as an additive in future and existing wood protective systems.