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great look: Chemical processes can lend myriad colours and a rich look to even not so upmarket wood.

Thanks to a special chemical process developed by the Institute of Wood Science and Technology (IWST), any ordinary piece of wood can gain a rich look, without a coat of polish.

The Ammonia Fumigation Technology (AFT) has been transferred to the wood industries, particularly in the fabrication segment where entrepreneurs have understood the grammar of AFT. The interior decoration segment in the housing sector will be the largest user of this technology.

The AFT is a simple technology: all it needs is an air tight fumigation chamber which can take different sizes of wooden extrusions. The wood, when exposed to ammonia vapour, changes colour and even the most ordinary wood such as Acacia, Mangium and Casuarina can look classy.

It changes colour depending on the intensity of fumigation, time and texture of the wood. The effect lasts almost a lifetime of the furniture or interiors. However, only the finished wood pieces should be fumigated. Different tones of colour could be achieved by keeping the wood in the fumigation chamber for different periods of time. Unlike polished wood, the fumigated variety will not have a coating on the wood which makes it look naturally exotic and enhances the beauty of the interiors and furniture.

Speaking to The Hindu-Property Plus, IWST Director Suresh Gairola said “This technology has been transferred to the industry. It has been designed to give additional tools to the wood fabricators and due to the various advantages, it can provide commercial value to even non-commercial types of wood.”

The coconut wood which has a distinct type of fibre can be bent to the desired shape under fumigation. The coconut wood can also be treated under various processes developed by the IWST that will give additional value as well as longevity.

The same technology has been applied to bamboo and the results have shown that like coconut wood, bamboo could also be given the desired shape.

Comparative studies on strength properties of ammonia-treated and untreated coconut wood were carried out by the Institute. But they did not show any significant difference in the property loss of the wood after treatment which means both bamboo and coconut wood retained the same fibre strength and shape after treatment. Bamboo can now come into the living rooms in different shapes which is a delightful proposition for interior decorators.

Similarly mangium, casuarina and acacia also did not lose any of their properties during the treatment.

Many more under-rated wood varieties were undergoing tests to meet the standards of the modern interior industry. Hopea parviflora and Eucalyptus hybrid are found to be highly resistant to fungal attack and naturally durable and therefore can be recommended for furniture making and constructing interior wood structures.

In wood composite technology, it is now possible to use small girth logs from plantation timber as substitute for primary timber.

One of the wood composite was Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) which can be used as substitute for solid wood as it retains the structural properties of wood.

LVL made of rubber wood has been evaluated for natural durability against white rot and brown rot fungi. This technology has also been transferred to the industry and builders and interior decorators have subscribed to the LVL wood composite products for their projects in a big way.

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