Effects of heat treatment on sound absorption coefficients in nanosilver-impregnated and normal solid woods.

Effects of impregnation with silver nano-suspension as well as heat-treatment on sound absorption coefficients (AC) were studied in tangential direction of five different solid woods based on their importance. AC was measured at two frequencies of 250 and 500 Hz. A 400 ppm nanosuspension was used for the impregnation; silver nanoparticles had a size range of 30-80 nm. Based on the obtained results, the species reacted significantly different in absorbing sound at the two frequencies. Impregnation with nano-suspension substantially decreased AC at the lower frequency of 250 Hz; it did not show any particular trend when AC was measured at the frequency of 500 Hz. Heat treatment significantly increased AC at the frequency of 250 Hz. ACs of mulberry tended to be similar at the two frequencies; in the other four species though, ACs were significantly different. High significant correlations were found in the hardwoods between the ACs measured at the two frequencies.

Effects of nanosilver on sound absorption coefficients in solid wood species.

Sound absorption coefficients (ACs) were determined in five solid woods (poplar, beech, walnut, mulberry, and fir) in the longitudinal and tangential directions at four different frequencies of 800, 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz. The length of the longitudinal and tangential specimens was 50-mm and 10-mm, respectively. Separate sets of specimens were impregnated with either nanosilver suspension or water. The size range of nanoparticles was 30-80 nm. Results showed that sound ACs were lower in longitudinal specimens because sound waves could penetrate the open ends of vessels more easily, being trapped and damped there. Impregnation with both nanosilver suspension and water resulted in a significant decrease in the sound ACs. The decrease in the ACs was due to the collapsing and accumulation of perforation plates and cell parts, blocking the way through which waves could pass through the vessels. This caused higher damping due to a phenomenon called vibration decay. Correlation between gas permeability versus sound AC is significantly dependant on the porous structure of individual specimens.

Nanosilane in medium-density fibreboard: effects of vapour chamber on fluid flow.

Effects were studied of vapour chamber on specific gas permeability of nanosilane (NS)-treated medium-density fibreboards (MDFs). Size range of nanoparticles was 20-80 nm. NS was used at four consumption levels of 0, 50, 100 and 150 g/kg dry wood fibres. Density of all treatments was kept constant at 0.67 g/cm(3). Specimens were kept for 18 weeks in vapourised chamber; their specific gas permeability was measured every two weeks. Results showed that extreme moisture uptake because of the biological structure of wood fibres, as well as mold and fungi growth on the specimens from the tenth week, resulted in the breaking down of the urea-formaldehyde resin; they also weakened the water-repellant effect of NS; consequently, the permeability increased significantly. It can be concluded that NS makes MDF susceptible to molds and therefore NS-treated MDF panels are not recommended for moist climates in which boards are exposed to water vapours in the air for a long time, although NS-panels primarily showed higher impermeability to water.