PREGNATED FIBROUS MATERIALS m REPORT f » OF A STUDY GROUP, BANGKOK, 20-24 N O V E M B E R 1967 IMPREGNATED FIBROUS MATERIALS The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency: AFGHANISTAN GERMANY, FEDERAL NORWAY ALBANIA REPUBLIC OF PAKISTAN A LG E R IA GHANA PANAMA ARGENTINA GREECE PARAGUAY AUSTRALIA GUATEMALA PERU AUSTRIA HAITI PHILIPPINES BELGIUM H O L Y SEE POLAND BOLIVIA HUNGARY PORTUGAL B R A ZIL ICELAND ROMANIA B U LG AR IA INDIA SAUDI ARABIA BURMA INDONESIA SENEGAL BYELORUSSIAN SOVIET IRAN SIERRA LEONE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC IRAQ SIN G APO R E CAMBODIA ISRAEL SOUTH AFRICA CAMEROON ITALY SPAIN CANADA IVORY COAST SUDAN CEYLON JAMAICA SWEDEN C H ILE JAPAN SWITZERLAND CHINA JORDAN SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC COLOMBIA KENYA THAILAND CONGO, DEMOCRATIC KOREA, REPUBLIC OF TUNISIA REPUBLIC OF KUWAIT TURKEY C O S T A R IC A LEBANON UGANDA CUBA LIBERIA UKRAINIAN SOVIET SOCIALIST CYPRUS LIBYA REPUBLIC CZECHOSLOVAK SOCIALIST LUXEMBOURG UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLIC MADAGASCAR REPUBLICS DENMARK MALI UNITED ARAB REPUBLIC DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MEXICO UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT ECUADOR MONACO BRITAIN AND NORTHERN EL SALVADOR MOROCCO IR E LA N D ETHIOPIA NETHERLANDS UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FINLAND NEW ZEALAND URUGUAY FRANCE NICARAGUA VENEZUELA GABON NIGERIA VIET-NAM YUGOSLAVIA The Agency’s Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Headquarters of the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is "to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world". Printed by the IAEA in Austria October 1968 PANEL PROCEEDINGS SERIES IMPREGNATED FIBROUS MATERIALS REPORT OP A STUDY GROUP ON IMPREGNATED FIBROUS MATERIALS ORGANIZED BY THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY AND HELD IN BANGKOK, 20-24 NOVEMBER 1967 INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 1968 IMPREGNATED FIBROUS MATERIALS (Panel Proceedings Series) ABSTRACT. Proceedings of a Study Group convened by the IAEA and held in Bangkok, 20-24 November 1968. The m eeting was attended by 39 participants from 13 countries and from international organizations. The publication contains 13 technical papers by various experts and status reports covering work and technology in polymer-containing fibrous materials in the Western and Eastern Hemispheres. Statements prepared by the Study Group are also included. Each technical paper is preceded by an abstract. Entirely in English. (376 pp., 16 X 24 cm, paper-bound, 122 figures; 1968) Price: US$9,50; £3.19.2 ♦ The front cover shows two hand-carved figurines from the Republic of China (Taiw an). The material is soft wood which, after carving, was impregnated with a monomer that was subsequently polymerized by gamma ra d ia tio n . IMPREGNATED FIBROUS MATERIALS IA E A , V IE N N A , 1968 STI/PUB/209 FOREWORD There has recently been renewed interest in the use of radiation from radioisotopes or particle accelerators to initiate and sustain chemical re­ actions. Particular attention is being paid to the production of wood-plastic composites, a process which is now a commercial reality with radiation competing against chemical methods to enhance the properties of wood. It has been reported that water repellancy, hardness, weathering, insect and chemical resistance, compressive, bending and shear strength can be signi­ ficantly improved by the process, but so far there has been a limited com­ m ercial outlet for the product. Papers on this subject were presented at the International Atom ic Energy Agency1 s Symposium on Industrial Uses of Large Radiation Sources, Salz­ burg, May 1963, and since then the Agency has been aware of the interest of developing countries in conducting research on wood and other fibrous materials as a means of further exploiting natural resources. It was felt that some attempt should be made to co-ordinate, on a regional basis, the work being done in this field and at the same time review the world status, including the associated technology in such areas as monomer-polymer chemistry and impregnation techniques where they are directly related to this w ork. Because of the wide range of fibrous materials being studied there, Asia and the Far East was chosen as the most representative area and 39 participants from 13 countries, and from international organizations, met in Bangkok from 20 to 24 November 1967 to assess the potential of im­ pregnated fibrous materials. This report is a record of the meeting and is based not only on work performed both inside and outside the region but also on details of the resources and industries in the area. The Agency gratefully acknowledges the help of the Thai Office of Atomic Energy for Peace which made facilities available for the meeting and wishes to thank all the authors, including those not present in Bangkok, who contributed papers. CONTENTS INTRODUCTORY PAPER History of impregnation techniques' with fibrous materials ................ 3 H. T a г к o w SUPPORTING TECHNOLOGY Permeability of wood in relation to its structure and penetrability by fluids ......................................................................................... 19 E.L. Ellwood and R.C. Thomas Factors affecting the impregnation of bagasse and other Far-Eastern fibrous materials ...................................................... 35 Ung-Ping Wang Monomer-polymer chemistry and the impregnation process ............ 45 V. Stannett Radiation engineering in the polymerization of monomers in fibrous materials: accelerators .................................................... 57 F.L. Dalton and J.D. McCann Radiation engineering in the polymerization of monomers in fibrous materials: radioisotopes ................................................... 71 A.J. Felice Impregnation and polymerization methods and systems used in the production of wood-polymer materials ..................................... 83 W.E. Mott and G.J. Rotariu Degradation of polymers by ultra-violet light..................................... 93 D.T. Turner Emulsion graft-polymerization in wood by means of gamma irradiation ......................................................................... 107 M. G o t o d а Wood impregnation with polyethyleneglycol........................................ 115 P .-О. К in ell STATEMENTS PREPARED BY THE STUDY GROUP Monomers and monomer mixtures used in impregnation of fibrous materials ......................................................................... 121 Comparison of thermal, gamma and electron initiation..................... 124 STATUS REPORTS Status and Technology of Polymer-Containing Fibrous Materials in the Western Hemisphere ................................................................ 129 Western Europe, with particular reference to Sweden............ ......... 129 Contributed by P .-О. K i n e 11 and P. Aagaard Finland .............................................................................................. 152 Contributed by J.К. Miettinen Europe............................................................................................... 169 Contributed by T. Czvikovszky and J. Dobó United States of America .................................................................. 190 Contributed by G.J. Rotariu and W.E. Mott Europe: a summary ......................................................................... 209 Contributed by A. Burmester Status and Technology of Polymer-Containing Fibrous Materials in the Eastern Hemisphere ................................................................ 217 Australia............................................................................................ 217 Contributed by J .G. Clouston India................................................................................................... 231 Contributed by V.K. Iya Japan................................................................................................. 250 Wood-plastic composites .............................................................. 250 Contributed by T. Hirayama Radiation grafting of vinyl comonomers to wood ............................ 262 Contributed by T. Murayama Republic of Korea .............................................................................. 264 Contributed by Chwa-Kung Sung Pakistan ............................................................................................ 267 Graft-polymerization under irradiation and its effect on water repellency and resistance to certain micro-organisms ... 267 Contributed by М.H. Awan and Ather Husain Effect of percentage graft on the breaking strength of Jute yarn ....... 278 Contributed by M.H. Awan, Din Mohammed and Quazi Abdul Qadir The Philippines ................................................................................. 286 Contributed byLetitica Bonoan Republic of China (Taiwan) ................................................................ 293 Contributed by Ung-Ping Wang Thailand ........................................................................................... 303 Radiation polymerization in Thailand ............................................. 303 Contributed by M.L. Anong Nilubol and Somkiart Greethong Wood resources of Thailand ........................................................... 305 Contributed by PongSono Viet Nam............................................................................................ 310 Contributed by Le-Van-Thoi TECHNICAL PAPERS Fibrous