Oil heat treatment (OHT) was used to improve the durability of Cunninghamia lanceolata and Firmiana simplex woods against brown (Coniophora puteana) and white-rot fungi (Trametes versicolor) using silicone oil as the heating medium. The wood samples were silicone oil heat treated (SOHT) at 150°C, 180°C, and 210°C for 2 h, 4 h, and 8 h respectively. After the treatments, the wood samples were exposed to fungi attack and the weight loss, fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were examined and compared with the control (untreated). The results showed that SOHT C. lanceolata and F. simplex woods, particularly at 210°C for 8 h recorded low weight loss, after exposure to C. puteana and T. versicolor fungi with C. puteana being the least virulent. SOHT woods at higher temperatures, altered the chemical components of the exposed samples as indicated by FTIR spectra. The crystallinity index of the treated woods was increased after exposure to C. puteana and T. versicolor fungi.
Kufre Edet Okon [ Department of Forestry and Wildlife, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Uyo, P.M.B. 1017, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State 520003, Nigeria ]
Corresponding Author
Idiana-Abasi Kufre Okon [ Department of Geography and Natural Resources Management, Faculty of Social Science, University of Uyo, P.M.B. 1017, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State 520003, Nigeria ]
Ebenezer Adeyemi Iyiola [ Institute of Integrative Biology and Systems, Université Laval, Québec G1V 0A6, Canada ]