Reacción al Fuego de Tres Maderas Angiospermas Impregnadas con Sales de Boro

Abstract

Wood is a combustible material; therefore, it is important to investigate techniques to increase its resistance to fire. The retention of boron salts in wood measures the suitability of the impregnation treatment and the aptitude of one species for its preservation and reaction to fire. The objectives of this research are, on one hand, to determine the apparent density of this kind of wood and its capacity to retain boron salts and on the other hand, to measure ignition time and mass loss in reaction to fire tests. The investigation verified the capacity of retention of boron salts of Spathodea campanulata (Tulipán africano), Fraxinus americana (Fresno blanco) and Albizia plurijuga (Tepehuaje). For each species, forty small specimens were impregnated with the hot-cold bath method with a solution of boric acid and sodium borate with concentrations of one, two, and three percent. The density and moisture content of the wood were determined. Fire reaction tests were conducted lasting two minutes and the ignition time and mass loss were measured. Impregnated wood with boron salts increases the apparent resistance of wood to fire exposure. The density of the wood increases with the increase of ignition time whereas mass loss decreases.