Be. Dawson-andoh et al., Magnetic resonance imaging as a potential tool in the study of wood penetration by waterborne preservative systems, WOOD FIB SC, 33(1), 2001, pp. 84-89
This paper reports an application of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to th
e study of penetration by waterborne wood preservatives into wood. Samples
of three wood species, red maple (Acer rubrum L.), ponderosa pine (Pinus po
nderosa Dougl. ex Laws.), and aspen (Populus tremuloides), containing diffe
rent anatomical features such as sapwood, heartwood, earlywood, latewood, a
nd knots, were air-dried and pressure-treated with water. Wood penetrated b
y water produced an intense signal and appeared bright, whereas those not p
enetrated by water produced no signal, and appeared dark. Heartwood of red
maple was poorly penetrated by water, while sapwood was penetrable to water
. Earlywood was more penetrable than latewood in both red maple and pondero
sa pine sapwood. Knots in ponderosa pine were also poorly penetrated. Aspen
sapwood was variable in penetrability. MRI provides a useful method for as
sessment of the penetrability of wood by water and consequently waterborne
preservatives.