The Prospect of Using a-Vinylnaphthalene for Modification of Wood Materials

Abstract

Natural wood is the most common natural polymer material that is affordable, non-toxic and widely used in various fields of industry and construction. However, wood also has disadvantages, to eliminate which it is modified with the use of organic and inorganic agents, oligomers and polymers that can protect it from external factors. The paper studies the possibility of using such a vinylaromatic monomer as α-vinylnaphthalene for modification and protective treatment of natural birch wood. It is shown that during processing in the conductive elements of birch wood under the influence of elevated temperatures, the polymerization of α-vinyl naphthalene proceeds by a radical mechanism. However, 100 % conversion of α-vinylnaphthalene and polyvinylnaphthalene cannot be achieved. Thus, the conductive elements of natural wood contain a composite consisting of α-vinyl naphthalene and polyvinyl naphthalene. It is shown that with an increase in the content of the proposed modifier in birch wood, water absorption and swelling of wood-polymer-monomer composite samples significantly decreases. This will increase the service life of products based on modified wood. The introduction of the proposed technology for modifying low-value wood species will contribute to the conservation of forest resources and their rational use