A composition containing succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor and a potentiator has been discovered to enhance the activity of the succinate dehydrogenase such that the amount of the succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor need to effectively treat a microbial substance can be reduced substantially. The compositions may be used as additives for paints and coatings, and protecting crops, seeds, wallboard, metal working fluids, wood from mold, fungi and other microbes.

A composition containing succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor and a potentiator has been discovered to enhance the activity of the succinate dehydrogenase such that the amount of the succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor need to effectively treat a microbial substance can be reduced substantially. The compositions may be used as additives for paints and coatings, and protecting crops, seeds, wallboard, metal working fluids, wood from mold, fungi and other microbes.

The invention relates to a filler for a surface-treatment composition, the filler comprising particles which have a surface coating which gives the respective particle a positive surface charge, and to the use of a particle, which comprises a carrier particle and a surface coating which gives each particle a positive surface charge, for treating wood.

The invention relates to a filler for a surface-treatment composition, the filler comprising particles which have a surface coating which gives the respective particle a positive surface charge, and to the use of a particle, which comprises a carrier particle and a surface coating which gives each particle a positive surface charge, for treating wood.

The present invention relates to the creation of thermally insulating materials derived from cellulosic materials by selectively depolymerizing the materials anatomy. Cellulosic materials may be comprised of three main biopolymers: lignin, hemicellulose, and cellulose. The present invention relates to the chemical and physical removal of lignin and hemicellulose, while leaving the cellulose unaltered to induce increased porosity within the material and the material's macrostructure matrix for use as thermal and acoustic insulation. The increased porosity will be due to the creation of closed cell voids within the cellulosic matrix. These voids will increase the thermal and acoustic insulating performance of the cellulosic materials. The selective removal of secondary biopolymers from cellulosic materials allow for isolation of other value added products that can be regenerated through fewer reactions/steps. This is a novel advantage over other similar processes that dissolve cellulose completely, making it harder to extract and isolate secondary off-stream products.

The invention relates to a method for producing OSB wood material panels, in particular OSB wood material panels having reduced emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including the following steps: a) producing wood strands from suitable woods; b) torrefying at least some of the wood strands; c) glue-coating the torrefied wood strands and non-torrefied wood strands with at least one binder; d) scattering the glue-coated wood strands onto a conveyor belt; and e) pressing the glue-coated wood strands to form a wood material panel. The invention further relates to an OSB wood material panel that can be produced in accordance with said method and to the use of torrefied wood strands to reduce the emission of VOCs from OSB wood material panels.

The invention relates to a method for producing OSB wood material panels, in particular OSB wood material panels having reduced emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including the following steps: a) producing wood strands from suitable woods; b) torrefying at least some of the wood strands; c) glue-coating the torrefied wood strands and non-torrefied wood strands with at least one binder; d) scattering the glue-coated wood strands onto a conveyor belt; and e) pressing the glue-coated wood strands to form a wood material panel. The invention further relates to an OSB wood material panel that can be produced in accordance with said method and to the use of torrefied wood strands to reduce the emission of VOCs from OSB wood material panels.

A delignified wood material is formed by removing substantially all of the lignin from natural wood. The resulting delignified wood retains cellulose-based lumina of the natural wood, with nanofibers of the cellulose microfibrils being substantially aligned along a common direction. The unique microstructure and composition of the delignified wood can provide advantageous thermal insulation and mechanical properties, among other advantages described herein. The thermal and mechanical properties of the delignified wood material can be tailored by pressing or densifying the delignified wood, with increased densification yielding improved strength and thermal conductivity. The chemical composition of the delignified wood also offers unique optical properties that enable passive cooling under solar illumination.

A method of treating an elongate wood member is provided, the wood member having an outer surface and a cross-section. The method includes (1) forming a plurality of holes into the outer surface of the wood member; (2) introducing a treatment composition which includes a boron-containing compound into the plurality of holes; and (3) steam treating the wood member for a duration of from about 15 minutes to about 24 hours, the steam having a temperature of from about 80 C. to about 150 C. The steam treatment causes the boron-containing compound to diffuse from the formed holes into the cross-section of the wood member.

A method of treating an elongate wood member is provided, the wood member having an outer surface and a cross-section. The method includes (1) forming a plurality of holes into the outer surface of the wood member; (2) introducing a treatment composition which includes a boron-containing compound into the plurality of holes; and (3) steam treating the wood member for a duration of from about 15 minutes to about 24 hours, the steam having a temperature of from about 80 C. to about 150 C. The steam treatment causes the boron-containing compound to diffuse from the formed holes into the cross-section of the wood member.