Service life and aesthetics are important for outdoor wooden claddings and building façade materials. Powder like mould fungi grow on wood surfaces and spread, subject to the availability of nutrients, moisture, oxygen and the temperature conditions. The types of nutrients are believed to cause a change in the fungal cell material. There is a need to identify different fungi species as part of service life evaluations of wooden claddings, even if they are influenced by different substrates. The objective of this study is to characterize wood mould fungi cultivated on two different substrates through attenuated total reflection (ATR) – Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The mould fungus Aureobasidium pullulans was cultivated in laboratory conditions on uncoated and red coated pine wood (Pinus sp.). Preliminary data reveal that ATR-FTIR spectroscopy may have potential to be used to identify and evaluate the changes occurring in the fungal cell material harvested from different nutrient sources. Specifically, the fingerprint region between 1200 cm-1 – 700 cm-1 is an interesting source for evaluation of fungal cell wall components.
Keywords: Wood Material, Building Pathology, Fungus, ATR, FTIR, Aesthetic
Authors
Gupta B.S.
Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Civil and Transport Engineering, Trondheim, Norway
Jelle B.P.
SINTEF Building and Infrastructure, Department of Materials and Structures, Trondheim, Norway
Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Civil and Transport Engineering, Trondheim, Norway
Hovde P.J.
Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Civil and Transport Engineering, Trondheim, Norway
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