Photodegradation of Timber of Three Hardwood Species Caused by Different Light Sources

In this study, resistance of black locust, beech and poplar wood to photodegradation was tested, applying sunlight, a xenon lamp and a mercury vapour lamp. The irradiation time was 200 hours for sunlight and the xenon light and 20 hours for the mercury light. The changes were monitored by colour measurements and infrared spectroscopy. The colour change of black locust was more intensive at the beginning of the irradiation than that of the beech and poplar. The degradation of aromatic structure of lignin (absorbing at 1510 and 1596 cm-1) in black locust was minor compared to the same changes of beech and poplar during the first 10 hours. The mercury lamp induced more intensive changes both in colour and in infrared spectrum than the other two light sources. The results show that the high extractive content of black locust absorbs a considerable amount of light radiation protecting the main chemical components of wood.