Durability, Reaction to Fire Properties and Environmental Impact of Treated and Untreated Wooden Claddings

This work summarizes the output of durability, reaction to fire properties, and environmental impact of wooden claddings subjected to treatments modified with TiO₂ and clay nanoparticles. The objective was to investigate the effects of 1 wt% of TiO₂ and clay nanoparticles in existing water-based and stain coatings and preservatives regarding the properties mentioned above. Water vapor resistance properties were used to assess the moisture transfer properties of the specimens by using the cup test. The reactions to fire properties of the specimens were analyzed using small-scale cone calorimeter test. Accelerated aging was used to study the weathering properties of specimens, where the performance of the specimens with aging was characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis. The effect of increasing the percentage of nanoparticles from 1 wt% to 3 wt% on the weathering properties of the specimens was further analyzed. Moreover, comparison between the overall environmental impact between unmodified water-based paint and water-based paint modified with 1 wt% of TiO₂ nanoparticles was performed using available environmental data and weathering test results as analyzed by FTIR.