Roughness, wettability, and morphological properties of impregnated and densified wood materials

Abstract

The effects of pre-impregnation on surface roughness, wettability, and morphological structure of densified aspen and fir wood were investigated. Wood specimens were impregnated with paraffin, linseed oil, and styrene after pre-vacuum treatment. The impregnated specimens were densified using compression ratios of 20% and 40% at 120 °C, 150 °C, and 180 °C. The roughness decreased and the contact angle increased in all impregnated specimens (undensified and densified). Compared to paraffin and linseed oil-impregnated specimens, lower roughness and higher contact angle were found in styrene-impregnated specimens. After densification, the roughness and wettability of the wood specimens decreased. More successful results (lower roughness and higher contact angle) were generally obtained in specimens densified with high compression ratio (40%). In both untreated and impregnated specimens, the contact angle increased with increasing compression temperature. While the effect of compression temperature on the roughness of the fir specimens was not significant, the roughness of the aspen specimens (especially styrene-impregnated) decreased with the increase in temperature. Scanning electron microscopy observations indicated that impregnation agents (especially styrene) clung to wood cell walls and partially or completely filled the lumens. This was positively correlated with the determined roughness and wettability. Pre-impregnation facilitated wood densification without significant cell deformations.