44 / 2021-06-11 19:05:48

Treatment of wood by sulfate radical oxidation produced from thermally-activated persulfate: VOCs emission and wood property evaluation

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), Sulfate radical, Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), Thermal activation, Pinus radiata.

Wood emits volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can affect people’s health and air quality. Based on advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), sulfate radicals produced via thermally-activated persulfate can minimize VOCs. This research aims to apply this technique to minimize the VOCs content in Pinus radiata. The results showed that terpenes and alcohols were the main VOCs emitted from Pinus radiata, which were greatly minimized using four different treatments; however, acetic acid and 3-furaldehyde emissions increased. Furthermore, the temperature and oxidizing agent contributed to VOCs degradation. Characterization results including FTIR, XRD, color tests, and compressive strength indicated that the AOPs treatment caused only a slight decline in the wood properties while effectively reducing VOCs emissions as much as 32.75-61.05 %.