CHITOSAN TREATED WOOD AND ITS EFFECTIVENESS AGAINST SOFT ROT Treu, A. 1 & Larnøy, E. 2 ABSTRACT The effectiveness against soft rotting micro fungi and other soil inhabiting micro-organisms was tested according to ENV 807 using different treated Scots pine sapwood and beech wood samples. The treatments differed in basic material, solvent, depolymerization agent, viscosity and post treatment. The chitosan treated Scots pine samples showed improved performance against soft rot, whereas a large amount of untreated pines sapwood samples failed during the test. The different chitosan treatments showed only slight differences in performance during the test. Further results of ongoing field tests should give more information about the life performance of the treated samples. Key words: chitosan, soft rot fungi, Scots pine sapwood INTRODUCTION Chitin is after cellulose one of the most naturally produced materials. Its deacetylation forms a chitosan polymer which can be used as a wood protecting agent. Various alternative and environmental friendly wood protection systems have been developed during the last decades due to restrictions in the use of conventional wood preservatives. Novel wood protection agents, such as chitosan, have to undergo several lab- and field testes in order to evaluate their effectiveness as a wood protecting agent. The here evaluated lab test according to ENV 807 with chitosan impregnated Scots pine and beech wood samples helps to pre-estimate the service life of chitosan treated wood products. MATERIAL AND METHODS The test was performed with different chitosan treated Scots pine sapwood (Pinus sylvestris) and beech wood samples (Fagus sylvatica) with dimensions 10 x 5 x 100 mm³. Three different chitosan products were used for the production of the different chitosan solutions. 1 Researcher, Section Wood Technology, Norwegian Forest and Landscape Institute, Pb. 115, 1431 Ås, Norway, Tel: +47-64949029, Fax: +47-64949080, Email: andreas.treu@skogoglandskap.no 2 Researcher, Section Wood Technology, Norwegian Forest and Landscape Institute, Pb. 115, 1431 Ås, Norway, Tel: +47-64949016, Fax: +47-64949080, Email: erik.larnoy@skogoglandskap.no 27