TY - CONF

T1 - Phenol Formaldehyde Resin Treatment of End Grain Cobbles for Flooring and Paving Applications

AU - Spear, Morwenna

AU - Jones, Dylan

AU - Miles, Christopher

AU - Ormondroyd, Graham

PY - 2022/4/25

Y1 - 2022/4/25

N2 - End-grain cobbles were a well known 19th Century flooring, paving and road surfacing product, often manufactured from high density, high durability hardwood timbers such as Algorrobo, Karri, Jarrah, to provide excellent wear resistance. Other nations used durable softwoods including Douglas fir and Cedar, or used oils and creosotes to treat less durable species. It also saw extensive use in the 1920s in engineering shops and factories to provide a more forgiving surface if metal components were dropped. Modern resurgence of interest is in the designer floorings and paving in pedestrianised areas. This paper considers resin treatment as a method for enhancing the durability and wear resistance of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and European beech (Fagus sylvatica) for flooring and paving applications. A resin modification was conducted on blocks of 90 x 100mm cross section and three different longitudinal dimensions (20mm, 40mm and 70mm), using phenol formaldehyde. Resin uptake at time of treatment, and weight percent gain (WPG) after curing were evaluated, and revealed permeability differences between pine and beech. Hardness tests on the cobbles revealed superior performance compared to untreated wood, and the treated beech cobbles were harder than the treated pine. Treated and untreated cobbles were exposed to two cycles of soaking, freezing and thawing to investigate stability under a range of weather conditions likely in exterior applications. The PF resin treated end grain cobbles were more stable than untreated cobbles of the same species, and have potential for exterior applications. Issues for further consideration and product development are discussed and highlighted.

AB - End-grain cobbles were a well known 19th Century flooring, paving and road surfacing product, often manufactured from high density, high durability hardwood timbers such as Algorrobo, Karri, Jarrah, to provide excellent wear resistance. Other nations used durable softwoods including Douglas fir and Cedar, or used oils and creosotes to treat less durable species. It also saw extensive use in the 1920s in engineering shops and factories to provide a more forgiving surface if metal components were dropped. Modern resurgence of interest is in the designer floorings and paving in pedestrianised areas. This paper considers resin treatment as a method for enhancing the durability and wear resistance of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and European beech (Fagus sylvatica) for flooring and paving applications. A resin modification was conducted on blocks of 90 x 100mm cross section and three different longitudinal dimensions (20mm, 40mm and 70mm), using phenol formaldehyde. Resin uptake at time of treatment, and weight percent gain (WPG) after curing were evaluated, and revealed permeability differences between pine and beech. Hardness tests on the cobbles revealed superior performance compared to untreated wood, and the treated beech cobbles were harder than the treated pine. Treated and untreated cobbles were exposed to two cycles of soaking, freezing and thawing to investigate stability under a range of weather conditions likely in exterior applications. The PF resin treated end grain cobbles were more stable than untreated cobbles of the same species, and have potential for exterior applications. Issues for further consideration and product development are discussed and highlighted.

M3 - Paper

SP - 407

EP - 414

T2 - European Conference on Wood Modification, Nancy, France

Y2 - 25 April 2022 through 26 April 2022

ER -