Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies

Abstract Conservation of ancient wooden artifacts, in addition to consolidation advantage, prevent its deterioration over time. In this research, silane consolidants, including methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) and 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) with 25 wt% in ethanol were applied under contro...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Akbar Mastouri, Davood Efhamisisi, Asghar Tarmian, Carola Esposito Corcione, Alireza Gholinejad Pirbazari
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-08-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-14167-w
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849763579981463552
author Akbar Mastouri
Davood Efhamisisi
Asghar Tarmian
Carola Esposito Corcione
Alireza Gholinejad Pirbazari
author_facet Akbar Mastouri
Davood Efhamisisi
Asghar Tarmian
Carola Esposito Corcione
Alireza Gholinejad Pirbazari
author_sort Akbar Mastouri
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Conservation of ancient wooden artifacts, in addition to consolidation advantage, prevent its deterioration over time. In this research, silane consolidants, including methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) and 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) with 25 wt% in ethanol were applied under controlled conditions on modeled birch wood (Betula pendula) as a conservation strategy for archeological woods in terrestrial environments. While the wood samples were gradually saturated and dried, aesthetics and cell-walls integrity were also considered. The leaching characteristics, visual and physical changes of wood specimens were evaluated during 4 aging periods to assess their performance and stability. Morphological and chemical reactions were analyzed by FE-SEM microscopy and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, respectively. For comparison, antifungal properties and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA, DTG) were also examined on the samples. As results, silanization reduced the wood-water interactions while maintaining the aesthetic properties, especially with MPTMS. Maximum water-repellency of silane-treated woods were achieved after a water post-treatment, which probably indicates the secondary hydrolysis of silanes in the presence of water and their re-polymerization. Biological-durability testing (according to EN 113-2) of birch wood (not-durable), against Basidiomycete fungi (i.e., Trametes versicolor and Gloeophyllum trabeum) showed ~ 90% (very-durable) and ~ 65% (moderately-durable) efficiency for MPTMS- and MTMS-treated wood respectively. Based on FTIR and TGA analysis, more interactions of MPTMS with lignin was found, which is more consistent with the chemical nature of most archaeological woods. Thermal-stability and low hygroscopicity of silane-reinforced woods were also confirmed by TGA/DTG, indicating high conservation potential of silanes for historical woods. Meanwhile, a complementary study on real ancient samples is recommended.
format Article
id doaj-art-7776552dfe7f4f46ae1653cd89f3bcb5
institution DOAJ
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-7776552dfe7f4f46ae1653cd89f3bcb52025-08-20T03:05:22ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-08-0115111510.1038/s41598-025-14167-wSilanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studiesAkbar Mastouri0Davood Efhamisisi1Asghar Tarmian2Carola Esposito Corcione3Alireza Gholinejad Pirbazari4Department of Wood and Paper Science and Technology, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of TehranDepartment of Wood and Paper Science and Technology, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of TehranDepartment of Wood and Paper Science and Technology, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of TehranDepartment of Innovation Engineering, University of SalentoRestoration and Conservation of Components Related to the Historical Buildings, Research Institute of Cultural Heritage and TourismAbstract Conservation of ancient wooden artifacts, in addition to consolidation advantage, prevent its deterioration over time. In this research, silane consolidants, including methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) and 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) with 25 wt% in ethanol were applied under controlled conditions on modeled birch wood (Betula pendula) as a conservation strategy for archeological woods in terrestrial environments. While the wood samples were gradually saturated and dried, aesthetics and cell-walls integrity were also considered. The leaching characteristics, visual and physical changes of wood specimens were evaluated during 4 aging periods to assess their performance and stability. Morphological and chemical reactions were analyzed by FE-SEM microscopy and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, respectively. For comparison, antifungal properties and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA, DTG) were also examined on the samples. As results, silanization reduced the wood-water interactions while maintaining the aesthetic properties, especially with MPTMS. Maximum water-repellency of silane-treated woods were achieved after a water post-treatment, which probably indicates the secondary hydrolysis of silanes in the presence of water and their re-polymerization. Biological-durability testing (according to EN 113-2) of birch wood (not-durable), against Basidiomycete fungi (i.e., Trametes versicolor and Gloeophyllum trabeum) showed ~ 90% (very-durable) and ~ 65% (moderately-durable) efficiency for MPTMS- and MTMS-treated wood respectively. Based on FTIR and TGA analysis, more interactions of MPTMS with lignin was found, which is more consistent with the chemical nature of most archaeological woods. Thermal-stability and low hygroscopicity of silane-reinforced woods were also confirmed by TGA/DTG, indicating high conservation potential of silanes for historical woods. Meanwhile, a complementary study on real ancient samples is recommended.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-14167-wWood consolidationHistorical wood3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilaneMethyltrimethoxysilaneBiological durabilityAging
spellingShingle Akbar Mastouri
Davood Efhamisisi
Asghar Tarmian
Carola Esposito Corcione
Alireza Gholinejad Pirbazari
Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies
Scientific Reports
Wood consolidation
Historical wood
3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane
Methyltrimethoxysilane
Biological durability
Aging
title Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies
title_full Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies
title_fullStr Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies
title_full_unstemmed Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies
title_short Silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood: antifungal, physical-chemical and TGA studies
title_sort silanes for conservation of archaeological woods using modeled birch wood antifungal physical chemical and tga studies
topic Wood consolidation
Historical wood
3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane
Methyltrimethoxysilane
Biological durability
Aging
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-14167-w
work_keys_str_mv AT akbarmastouri silanesforconservationofarchaeologicalwoodsusingmodeledbirchwoodantifungalphysicalchemicalandtgastudies
AT davoodefhamisisi silanesforconservationofarchaeologicalwoodsusingmodeledbirchwoodantifungalphysicalchemicalandtgastudies
AT asghartarmian silanesforconservationofarchaeologicalwoodsusingmodeledbirchwoodantifungalphysicalchemicalandtgastudies
AT carolaespositocorcione silanesforconservationofarchaeologicalwoodsusingmodeledbirchwoodantifungalphysicalchemicalandtgastudies
AT alirezagholinejadpirbazari silanesforconservationofarchaeologicalwoodsusingmodeledbirchwoodantifungalphysicalchemicalandtgastudies