Effect of thermal modification on chemical and physical properties of Iranian Beech (Fagus orientalis) and Velvet Maple (Acer Velutinum)

The present study was done with the aim of investigation of the effect of heat treatment on chemical and physical properties of Iranian beech and Velvet maple. Results of spectroscopy showed that heat treatment led to decrease of hydroxyl groups which became more sensible with increasing temperature up to 175oC. Treatment at 190oC led to an increase of hydroxyl group comparing to the control ones. Increasing cellulose crystallinity, decreasing the hemicellulose content, increasing the lignin ratio, degradation of syringyl lignin and increase the condensation reaction of lignin was also obtained from spectroscopy. Results of water absorption tests also showed that heat treatment caused decreasing of water absorption. The water repellent and anti-swelling efficiency for both species showed that heat treatment at 160oC didn’t improve the water repellency and dimensional stability however treatment at 190oC led to decrease of water absorbance specially in beech. In total, the effect of heat treatment on anti-swelling efficiency in beech was more considerable comparing to acer, which can be explained by higher weight loss after heat treatment.