WOOD TREATMENT

A major concern when remediating wood-treatment sites is that pentachlorophenol was often used in combination with metal salts, and these compounds, such as chromated copper—arsenate, are potent inhibitors of at least some pentachlorophenol degrading organisms (49). Sites with significant levels of such inorganics may not be suitable candidates for bioremediation. 

Copper quinolinolate (oxine copper) is the chelate of divalent copper and 8-hydroxyquinoline and shares most of its market with copper naphthenate, which is a complex copper salt of mixed naphthenic acids. The principal uses are in wood treatments and some military textiles, where the green color is not objectionable. Copper naphthenate has an odor but is cheaper than oxine. Both copper naphthenate and 2inc naphthenate have performed well in environment tests, with exposure to soil above-ground, as well as concrete (33). 

Pesticidal L S DDT BHC Aldrin Dieldrin Pesticides Wood treatment... 

Used industrially for gold extraction and wood treatment and to manufacture insecticides,... 

In the United States, about 80% of the 23 million kg of technical PCP produced annually — or about 46% of worldwide production — is used mainly for wood preservation, especially utility poles (Pignatello etal. 1983 Kinzell etal. 1985 Zischke etal. 1985 Choudhury etal. 1986 Mikesell and Boyd 1986 USPHS 1994). It is the third most heavily used pesticide, preceded only by the herbicides atrazine and alachlor (Kinzell et al. 1981). Pentachlorophenol is a restricted-use pesticide and is no longer available for home use (USPHS 1994). Before it became a restricted-use pesticide, annual environmental releases of PCP from production and use were 0.6 million kg to the atmosphere from wood preservation plants and cooling towers, 0.9 million kg to land from wood preservation use, and 17,000 kg to aquatic ecosystems in runoff waters of wood treatment plants (USPHS 1994). There are about 470 wood preservative facilities in the United States, scattered among 45 states. They are concentrated in the South, Southeast, and Northwest — presumably due to the availability of preferred timber species in those regions (Cirelli 1978). Livestock facilities are often constructed of wood treated with technical PCP about 50% of all dairy farms in Michigan used PCP-treated wood in the construction of various components of livestock facilities (Kinzell et al. 1985). The chemical is usually applied to wood products after dilution to 5% with solvents such as mineral spirits, No. 2 fuel oil, or kerosene. More than 98% of all wood processed is treated with preservative under pressure about 0.23 kg of PCP is needed to preserve 1 cubic foot of wood (Cirelli 1978). Lumber treated with PCP retains its natural appearance, has little or no odor, and can be painted as readily as natural wood (Wood et al. 1983). 

Soil auguring can be applied to a wide variety of sites, including wood treatment facilities, oil and gas production units, bulk storage sites, pipeline, manufactured gas plants and other sites contaminated with residual oils, petroleum products, VOCs, semi-VOCs, and other contaminants. This technology is also applicable to sites with complicated, heterogeneous subsurface geology that can render more traditional approaches ineffective, or at sites where excavation is not cost-effective or practical. 

Hematological Effects. A decrease in red blood cell counts was observed in persons exposed to a wood treatment liquid containing phenol, formaldehyde, and organic chlorohydrocarbons (Baj et al. 1994). Although only limited data were identified, hemolytic anemia and methemoglobinemia are considered to be well-documented complications of phenol poisoning in humans (ACGIH 1991). 

Hepatic Effects. An increase in serum iron, which may reflect an adverse liver effect, was observed in workers exposed for 6 months to phenol in a wood treatment liquid (Baj et al. 1994). Elevated concentrations of hepatic enzymes in serum, and an enlarged and tender liver suggestive of liver injury, were reported in an individual who had been exposed repeatedly to phenol vapor for 13.5 years (Merliss 1972). Since phenol was also spilled on his clothes resulting in skin irritation, dermal and inhalation exposures were involved. A 2-fold increase in serum bilirubin was observed in a man who was accidentally splashed with a phenol solution over his face, chest wall, hand, and both arms (Horch et al. 1994). Changes in liver enzymes were not observed in persons exposed to phenol in drinking water for several weeks after an accidental spill (Baker et al. 1978). This study is not conclusive because the measurements were completed 7 months after the exposure. 

The dynamic viscoelastic properties of acetylated wood have been determined and compared with other wood treatments in a number of studies. Both the specific dynamic Young s modulus (E /j) and tan S are lower in acetylated wood compared with unmodified wood (Akitsu etal., 1991, 1992, 1993a,b Korai and Suzuki, 1995 Chang etal., 2000). Acetylation also reduces mechanosorptive creep deformation of the modified wood (Norimoto etal., 1992 Yano etal, 1993). In a study of the dynamic mechanical properties of acetylated wood under conditions of varying humidity, it was concluded that the rate of diffusion of moisture into the wood samples was not affected by acetylation (Ebrahimzadeh, 1998). 

A wood treatment in which the temperature is sufficient to cure the oil to some extent, but leaves the wood substrate unaltered. 

Burmester, A. (1967). Tests for wood treatment with monomeric gas of formaldehyde using gamma rays. Holzforschung, 21(1), 13-20. 

Vasishth, R.C. (1983). Importance of depositing polymers in wood-cell walls for wood treatment. Proceedings of the American Wood Preservers Association, 79, 129-135. 

Metal profiles for two sediment cores from the Elizabeth River, VA, USA. Land use along the shores adjacent to collection site PC-1 (Paradise Creek) is primarily industrial and includes oil terminals, shipyard installations, coal transfer facilities, petroleum distribution and shipment operations, and wood treatment facilities. It has been identified as a toxic hot spot by the U.S. EPA. Land-use adjacent to WB-2 (Western Branch) is primarily residential. Excess lopb and profiles for (a) PC-1 and (b) WB-2 profiles. These were used to determine accumulation rates (1.1 to 2.3cm/y at PC-1 and <0.5cm/y at WB-2). Trace metal enrichment factor profiles (see Eq. 28.1 in text) are presented in profiles (c-g) in groups determined by the depth and shape of their concentration peaks. Source From Conrad, C. R, et al. (2007). Marine Pollution Bulletin 54, 385-395. 

Rosenfeld JK, Plumb RH. 1991. Ground water contamination at wood treatment facilities. Ground Water Monitoring Review XI 133-140. 

The Extraksol process can extract organic contaminants such as oils and greases, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), pentachlorophenols (PCPs), and phenols from a variety of solid matrices. The Extraksol process can extract polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from clay-bearing soil, sand, and FuUer s earth. Extraksol has successfully treated various media such as activated carbons, refinery sludges, and wood treatment sludges. 

Former Wood Treatment Facility, Loppersum, The Netherlands 1989 3000 yd of clay contaminated with arsenic and copper 160,000... 

In 1997, it was reported that the vendor was using in situ geochemical fixation to remediate a Midwestern wood treatment site contaminated with chromium. The cleanup is expected to last for 2 years and cost approximately 600,000. The vendor states that treating the site by conventional pump-and-treat technology would have taken more than a decade to complete and would have cost far more (D16925Z, p. 1). 

A pilot stndy of DDC for the remediation of pentachlorophenol (PCP) was conducted at a wood treatment site in Denver, Colorado, in 1996. Using DDC, PCP concentrations at the site were rednced by 43%. The total cost of this pilot demonstration was 80,000 (D188709, p. 30). 

Wyllie et al. ( 8) have studied PCP levels in the air of a small US wood treatment plant (pressure treatment). PCP could be found in all samples, the highest values (0.2-15 yg/M ) were found in samples taken inside the pressure treatment building. Analyses of the PCP-levels in the urine and blood serum from the exposed workers were also included in this study. The urine values ranged between O.OU-O.76 yg/ml and the blood serum values were between 0.35-3.55 yg/ml. A good parallellity was observed between the urine and the blood values, and the highest values were found for a pressure treater and a welder. The dioxin impurities were not discussed in this study. 

According to the 1990-93 CAREX database for 15 countries of the European Union (Kauppinen et al., 1998) and the 1981-83 National Occupational Exposure Survey (NOES) in the United States (NOES, 1997), approximately 45 000 workers in Europe and as many as 27 000 workers in the United States were potentially exposed to pentachlorophenol (see General Remarks). Recent figures give rough estimates of 500 pentachlorophenol-exposed workers in wood treatment facilities in the United States (Norman, 1998). No current data on numbers of workers exposed to other chlorophenols were available. Occupational exposures to chlorophenols have occurred in their production, in the production and use of some phenoxy acid herbicides, in sawmills and other wood-related industries, the textile industry and tanneries. Occupational exposures to penta-... 

Technical CP formulations contain impurities such as polychlorinated phenoxyphenols (PCPPs), polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDDs), and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) (Humppi et al., 1984 Kitunen et al., 1985 Jackson Bisson, 1990). Therefore, PCPPs, PCDFs, and PCDDs are often found in CP-contaminated wood treatment sites (Kitunen et al., 1985, 1987 Jackson Bisson, 1990 Kitunen Salkinoja-Salonen, 1990 Trudell et al., 1994). PCPP concentrations up to 78 mg/kg, PCDF up to 3-8 mg/kg, and PCDDs at 13 mg/kg have been detected in CP-contaminated sites (Kitunen et al., 1987 Jackson Bisson, 1990). 

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