Dissertations in Forestry and Natural Sciences

7 Results
The most important findings from studies I–IV are summarized
in Table 5. The results will be presented in more detail in the
following chapters.
Table 5. A summary of the main findings in this thesis.
Study subject Studies The main findings
Impregnation of WPC
granules with the
distillates
I, III, and IV
The LG granules were successfully
impregnated with the distillates.
Hardwood and softwood distillates
enhanced the processability of the WPC
granules.
A small (1 wt%) addition of hardwood
distillate significantly increased the
tensile modulus of the WPC. A higher
distillate content (2–8 wt%) reduced
the mechanical properties of the WPC.
Mechanical properties
Water absorption
I, III, and IV
I, III, and IV
A minor (2 wt%) addition of softwood
distillate significantly increased the
tensile strength of the WPC. Strain and
bending increased significantly with a
high distillate content (over 4 wt%)
whereas the strength of the WPC
declined.
The WPCs containing wood distillates
absorbed less water than those without
distillates.
VOCs
II, III, and IV
PTR-TOF-MS is an applicable method for
determining VOCs from WPCs.
The VOC emissions from the WPCs
change considerably as a function of
time.
Dissertations in Forestry and Natural Sciences No 222 87