Application of thermal analysis for the evaluation of mineral solution penetration into wood

Abstract Interaction of mineral solutions with solid wood leads to saturation of the wood matrix, then to the deposition of mineral particles and eventually to reaction with wood components. In this way a partially or fully mineralized wood occurs in natural or artificial conditions, whose physical-mechanical properties are influenced by the retention and by the character of the solution. Targeted application of organosilanes is based on a similar principle that reduces the intake of liquid water and thus leads to an increase in durability, however, it also causes wood corrosion and consequent decrease in mechanical parameters. In this study, penetration of commercial organosilanes-based product Lukofob 39 into solid wood was described in order to determine the extent of the mineralized part into which the solution penetrated. In this case, characteristic mineral deposits are formed in the wood matrix and its quantification by thermal analysis can be advantageously used to describe the penetration of the solution. Based on the analyses of specific samples taken from primary specimens with different exposure times in the solution, it can be stated that with the increasing exposition time the penetration depth of the solution as well as the amount of mineral deposits increase. The shifts on the thermal analysis curves also show the corrosion effects of Lukofob 39 on the basic components of wood.