Microscopic assessment of the effect of saw-texturedPinus radiata plywood surface on the distribution of a film-forming acrylic stain

The micro-morphology of the wood-coating interface of saw-texturedPinus radiata plywood panels, which had been coated with a film-forming stain, was examined using a range of microscopic techniques. The surface appearance and tissue deformation characteristics of saw-textured plywood and the pattern of distribution of the applied coating were observed by combined light, confocal, and scanning electron microscopy. The saw-textured surface was highly irregular, with surface tissues greatly distorted, being bent, twisted, and occasionally detached, and showing extensive cell wall cracking. The applied coating conformed closely to the contours of the saw-textured surface, resulting in a highly variable film thickness. The film was thickest in the grooves and thinnest over the ridges, and in places discontinuous, particularly where wood cells protruded out of the wood surface. These and other salient features of the surface of saw-textured plywood are discussed in relation to the pattern of the applied acrylic stain topcoat.     

A novel method for coating of carbon nanotube on cellulose fiber using 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxylic acid as a cross-linking agent

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were coated by the exhaustion method and stabilized on a cotton surface using 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxylic acid (BTCA) as a crosslinking agent and sodium hypophosphite (SHP) as a catalyst. The Influence of CNTs on the performance of the cellulose fiber was investigated using Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometer (FTIR), thermo-gravimetric analyzer, scanning electron microscope (SEM), zeta potential analyzer, reflectance spectroscope, wrinkle recovery tester and bacteriological culture tube. The possible interactions between CNTs, the cross-linking agent and cellulose functional groups at the surface were elucidated by FTIR spectroscopy. The results indicated that the stabilized CNTs modify the surface of the fibers and increase the thermal stability of the substrate. SEM showed a uniform coating of CNTs on the fiber surface.