Bioresistance of thermally modified Populus tremuloides (North American Aspen) wood against four decay fungi.

A study was carried out to investigate the effect of thermal treatment on biological resistance of Populus tremuloides wood against four decay fungi, including T. versicolor, P. placenta, G. trabeum and C. puteana. The weight loss data showed that degradation of untreated wood by the white rot fungus T. versicolor resulted in higher weight loss (571%) compared to those by brown rot fungi G. trabeum (21•9%), P. placenta (36•7%) and C. puteana (7 1%). When this species was heat treated at 220°C, the weight loss was reduced to <10%. Increasing temperature and the holding time appeared to affect the resistance against I versicolor, P. placenta and G. trabeum attacks, but the effect on the resistance against C. puteana was not significant. The humidity during thermal modification affected the degradation of wood against I versicolor attack, but it did not have a significant effect on the other fungi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]