The correlation between strength loss of wood due to thermal degradation and the progress of the first peak reaction observed in DSC measurements was studied.Test materials were untreated sugar pine and sugar pine treated with the fire retardant Chemicals zinc Chloride and boric acid. Toughness and MOR losses were found to be linearly related to the fractional conversion, which can be calculated from the kinetic parameters determined by DSC. By assuming that the total strength loss due to fire retardant treatment and thermal exposure is the sum of an intrinsic loss due to physical changes, and a loss due to chemical changes measured by the fractional conversion, strength losses for any combination of exposure conditions and times can be predicted. It was found that these predictions are very good for toughness and reasonably good for MOR. These results allow the testing of fire retardant chemicals for their detrimental effects on strength properties by DSC rather than by thermal exposure followed by mechanical tests. Furthermore, redrying schedules for fire-retardant-treated lumber can be optimized for minimal strength losses.
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