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The Application of Modern Chemical Methods in the Analysis of...
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The Application of Modern Chemical Methods in the Analysis of Wood and Forestry Biomass—Challenges and Perspectives

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Wood Science and Forest Products".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 11999

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Tamás Hofmann

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Environmental Protection and Nature Conservation, Faculty of Forestry, University of Sopron, Bajcsy-Zsilinszky St. 4., H-9400 Sopron, Hungary
Interests: wood chemistry; plant extractives; chromatorgaphy; mass spectrometry; wood modification
Dr. Eszter Visi-Rajczi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Forestry, University of Sopron, 4 Bajcsy-Zsilinszky Str., 9400 Sopron, Hungary
Interests: plant antioxidants; chromatography; wood chemistry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Current environmental, social, and ecological factors illustrate the need for the better and more efficient use of wood and forestry (by)products, which presents new challenges for forestry and the wood industry. These factors, and the improved knowledge on wood and forestry biomass, may lead to new research perspectives and the implementation of novel products. State-of-the-art analytical techniques and methods are essential for the characterization of woody biomass, which provides insights into molecular wood composition and structure. The continuous development of analytical chemical instrumentation adds increasingly deeper insights into material structure and composition, which in turn leads to fresh knowledge offering a better understanding of physiological processes of woody plants.

This Special Issue focuses on (but is not limited to) the following major topics: the molecular relations of wood formation and wood modification; the chemical utilization of wood and forestry (by)products; and the effects of climate change on wood and forestry biomass composition. The use of instrumental chemical analytical methods, e.g. chromatographic, spectrometric and thermoanalytical, as well as hyphenated techniques, is required in the papers submitted to this Special Issue. Original research materials and reviews on certain topics are also welcomed for consideration. 

Dr. Tamás Hofmann
Dr. Eszter Visi-Rajczi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • wood chemistry
  • wood formation
  • forestry biomass
  • extractives
  • analytical techniques
  • biorefinery

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 3307 KiB  
Article
Investigations of the Chemical Distribution in Sorbitol and Citric Acid (SorCA) Treated Wood—Development of a Quality Control Method on the Basis of Electromagnetic Radiation
by Katarzyna Kurkowiak, Aaron K. Mayer, Lukas Emmerich and Holger Militz
Forests 2022, 13(2), 151; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13020151 - 20 Jan 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2340
Abstract
Recent studies showed treatments with sorbitol and citric acid (SorCA) to significantly improve the dimensional stability and biological durability of wood. The industrialization of this process requires a quality control (QC) method to determine if the fixated chemicals are homogenously distributed within the [...] Read more.
Recent studies showed treatments with sorbitol and citric acid (SorCA) to significantly improve the dimensional stability and biological durability of wood. The industrialization of this process requires a quality control (QC) method to determine if the fixated chemicals are homogenously distributed within the piece of wood, which is essential for uniform material performance. Therefore, the objective of this work was to evaluate the use of common electromagnetic radiation-based methods to determine the degree of modification in SorCA-treated wood. Both Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy have been used to create rough calibrations for the weight percent gain (WPG) prediction models. The FTIR measurements resulted in a high linear correlation between the band area ratio (BAR) and the WPG (R2 = 0.93). Additionally, a partial least square (PLS) regression of NIR spectroscopic data resulted in a model with a high prediction power (R2 = 0.83). Furthermore, X-ray density profiling emerged as a simple alternative for the QC by showing a gradient of modification chemicals inside the sample and differences in chemical uptake between earlywood and latewood. Overall, it can be concluded that the results from FTIR, NIR and X-ray densitometry can serve as indicators of impregnation chemical distribution in SorCA-modified wood. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Application of Modern Chemical Methods in the Analysis of Wood and Forestry Biomass—Challenges and Perspectives)
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16 pages, 2537 KiB  
Article
Liquid Chromatographic/Mass Spectrometric Study on the Role of Beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) Wood Polyphenols in Red Heartwood Formation
by Tamás Hofmann, Roman Guran, Ondrej Zitka, Eszter Visi-Rajczi and Levente Albert
Forests 2022, 13(1), 10; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13010010 - 21 Dec 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3026
Abstract
The present research focused on the analysis of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) wood polyphenols in respect to red heartwood formation, which is a significant color and technological defect of the species. For the first time, high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry and [...] Read more.
The present research focused on the analysis of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) wood polyphenols in respect to red heartwood formation, which is a significant color and technological defect of the species. For the first time, high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF) were applied for the investigation of the structure and the radial distribution of polyphenols. Altogether 125 compounds were characterized by their MSn spectra, of which 71 were tentatively identified, including procyanidins (dimers to pentamers), flavonoids (taxifolin, naringenin, isorhamnetin, (epi)afzelechin), (+)-catechin, (−)-epicatechin) and their glycoside conjugates, phenolic acids (gallic acid, vanillic acid, syringic acid) and their glycosides as well as gallic acid derivatives, many of which were identified for the first time in beech wood. It was found that the concentration of many compounds increased at the color boundary. In situ polyphenol synthesis and metabolism were clearly evidenced at the color boundary. Red heartwood contained only free aglycones (syringic acid, taxifolin, naringenin, isorhamnetin, naringenin, syringic acid). Contrary to earlier assumptions, the MALDI-TOF analysis did not indicate the presence of oxidized high-molecular-weight polymeric polyphenols in the red heartwood tissues. The role of individual compounds in the formation of the red heartwood chromophores are discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Application of Modern Chemical Methods in the Analysis of Wood and Forestry Biomass—Challenges and Perspectives)
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22 pages, 2571 KiB  
Article
Antioxidant and Antibacterial Properties of Norway Spruce (Picea abies H. Karst.) and Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carrière) Cone Extracts
by Tamás Hofmann, Levente Albert, László Németh, Martina Vršanská, Nikola Schlosserová, Stanislava Voběrková and Eszter Visi-Rajczi
Forests 2021, 12(9), 1189; https://doi.org/10.3390/f12091189 - 1 Sep 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3605
Abstract
According to recent studies, Norway spruce cones and eastern hemlock cones possess exceptionally high antioxidant capacities; however, the antioxidant efficiency of extractives and their bioactive effects have yet to be investigated in detail. The present article utilizes state-of-the art analytical chemical methodology and [...] Read more.
According to recent studies, Norway spruce cones and eastern hemlock cones possess exceptionally high antioxidant capacities; however, the antioxidant efficiency of extractives and their bioactive effects have yet to be investigated in detail. The present article utilizes state-of-the art analytical chemical methodology and chemometric evaluation to reveal cone extractives with the highest antioxidant potential, accounting for possible bioactive effects. Antioxidant properties were determined by the Ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay and the Folin–Ciocalteu’s total phenol content (TPC) assay. Structure and relative polyphenol concentrations were determined using liquid chromatography/diode array detection/tandem mass spectrometry. The antibacterial testing was conducted using Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli strains. Using correlation analysis and factor analysis, a scoring evaluation was implemented to determine and compare the antioxidant efficiency of extractives. In Norway spruce, piceatannol-O-hexoside and coumaric acid derivatives were found to be the most powerful antioxidants, while in eastern hemlock, kaempferol glycosides were the most powerful. The antibacterial test did not show any promising antimicrobial activity against E. coli, although a visible inhibitory effect on S. aureus strain was observed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Application of Modern Chemical Methods in the Analysis of Wood and Forestry Biomass—Challenges and Perspectives)
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13 pages, 4082 KiB  
Article
Effect of Water Leaching on Photodegraded Scots Pine and Spruce Timbers Monitored by FTIR Spectroscopy
by Edina Preklet, László Tolvaj, Eszter Visi-Rajczi and Tamás Hofmann
Forests 2021, 12(7), 833; https://doi.org/10.3390/f12070833 - 24 Jun 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1572
Abstract
The goal of this research was the systematic study and comparison of the divided individual effects of UV light irradiation and water leaching during artificial weathering. Spruce (Picea abies Karst.) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) samples were irradiated by ultraviolet [...] Read more.
The goal of this research was the systematic study and comparison of the divided individual effects of UV light irradiation and water leaching during artificial weathering. Spruce (Picea abies Karst.) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) samples were irradiated by ultraviolet (UV) light. Another sequence of samples was treated with the combination of UV irradiation and water leaching. The total extent of UV treatment was 20 days for both series of samples. Time relation of UV irradiation and water leaching was 2:1. The chemical changes were observed by FTIR spectroscopy. The difference spectrum was used for determination of the chemical changes. Degradation of lignin was greater for the leached samples than for the pure UV treated samples. Scots pine suffered greater lignin degradation than spruce, and produced higher absorption increase on the absorption region of unconjugated carbonyls. The unconjugated carbonyl groups were the most responsive chemical elements to leaching. Spruce was more susceptible to leaching of unconjugated carbonyl groups than Scots pine. Two absorption bands of unconjugated carbonyl groups at 1706 and 1764 cm−1 wavenumbers were produced by photodegradation. The absorption band at 1764 cm−1 was more sensitive to water leaching than the band at 1706 cm−1. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Application of Modern Chemical Methods in the Analysis of Wood and Forestry Biomass—Challenges and Perspectives)
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