Stabilizing wood

[Janne]

Tomorrow I will do the first batch of stabilization of wood. Vacuum chamber is constructed and vacuum tested. Did not implode!

I have cut a bunch of woods, all different, plus palmtree wood and some whalebone, to a rough shape.

Once the air escaping from the material stops, and I pressurize it back, how long should I leave the materials submerged in the Cactus Juice before I bake it (harden) ?

 

[Nomad666]

I have a few scales I would like to vacuum chamber but I am having trouble finding liquids made for this anyone have a list of them that could be used?
I used to be able to get a wood hardener at the paint stores but none carry it any more I assume due to such a small call for it now it was used to harden up rotting wood in heritage buildings here...

 

[Janne]

Well, I will be using Cactus Juice I had sent over from the US. Several pen and wood working sites online give the impression it is the best.

 

[Robson Valley]

Go slow. All details of wood anatomy point to partially obstructed pathways for liquid flow.
While you might see the air evacuation occur quite quickly, the liquid replacement is different physics.

To aspirate spinach leaf disks in the lab with bicarbonate solution, usually needed 4-6 evacuations
before the damn disks would sink in the bicarb solution.

The viscosity of your liquid is far greater than aqueous.

 

[Janne]

Thanks! I will leave them submerged overnight then.

 

[Janne]

Did not do it yesterday, I had to make some more handle roughs to fill up the jar.
Bubbling away now nicely....

I did some flotsam wood ( semi punky, healthy center a beautiful reddish hue), Arctic stunted birch, normal birch, palm tree, black mangrove, Seagrape and flat bits of cow bone.

 

[Robson Valley]

Their response times will all be different. Moisture content and anatomical differences should account for the variations.
Wish I was a fly on the wall to watch.

 

[Janne]

Just checked. 45 minutes running now. Bone virtually no bubbles ( is only maybe 3 mm thick), birch very little bubbling. Punky wood bubbles.
Seagrape most bubbling.
The palm wood is invisible as it is in the middle and covered with some large bolts with nuts.
All wood was thoroughly dried, the beach wood soaked in fresh water first.
Dried outside, then inside ( higher humidity outside)

As I wanted to submerge the pieces I sacrified a steel mesh pasta drainer and took the largest nuts and bolts I had.

The jar is a glass cookie jar, Made in China, with a very thin steel screw on lid with zero fit and no seal, but I used some of the impression material I use at work.
Quick setting.

They were holding the body of the G-wagen to the chassis, M14.
Will get new ones when I go to Europe next.

 

[Robson Valley]

Keep track of the out-gassing sequence, if you can.
Go easy when you start to let the air in again, that's all the pressure that you have to work with so don't press hard.
Your permeating fluid ( Cactus Juice?) takes it's own sweet time to flow in.

BTW, just made a donation to Wikipedia.

 

[Janne]

I have made a connection on the line so I can attach a pressure line to it.
I think I will let it sit and absorb the CJ for maybe two days under atmospheric pressure then do a day with over pressure.

I might overdo it, but as I have difficulties shipping the CJ liquid in, I rather that.


I am please the jar holds up. I bought three, and two imploded in my own QC. I did not test it for overpressure though.


The lid is nicely concave from the vacuum. POS.

Another 40 minutes. Punky wood and Seagrape still bubbling like a Vintage Champagne!

 

[Janne]

the weird bit is that the seagrape feels heavier than the birch, but the birch has stopped bubbling!

 

[Janne]

Once I am done with those pieces, I will do the Piece de resistance.
Ancient whale bone.
Plus I will do some other materials, like the thickest part of the stem of a coconut palm.
Also will later try to do a laminate of the fishnet looking thin part that surrounds the base of the coconut palm frond/ leaf.
And stabilize a finished leather sheath.
I have some crazy ideas.
I am somewhat crazy.

 

[Robson Valley]

Don't bother with over pressure. Air is elastic/compressible. You squash the air, let in a little more CJ.
Then when you come back down to 1 atm, that wood air expands and pushes out the CJ to equilibrium.
Too expensive.

 

[Janne]

Aha!
Well, it only cost me two brass valves and a brass t- connector.

But you saved me a lot of time and potentially a broken jar plus spilled CJ!

 

[Janne]

Now, would you say Yay or Nay:
If I take the largest carrot I can find, dehydrate it, then stabilize it.
Would it work?

 

[Robson Valley]

Yes. You should be able to stabilize a freeze-dried carrot.
BUT
The Diffusion Path Length to totally infiltrate the carrot will take forever and a day.
At least the wood is composed of a vascular system designed to carry liquid.
By contrast, carrots are franken-storage tissue. Designed not to leak, in or out, yes?

 

[Nice65]

the weird bit is that the seagrape feels heavier than the birch, but the birch has stopped bubbling!

Same principle as Balsa wood? Extremely heavy when fresh cut, mainly air when dry? The Seagrape is taking in a lot of the fluid?

 

[Janne]

When dry, heavier than dry birch.
The punked wood has stopped bubbling. Seagrape still bubbles a little bit. Weird. Small bubbles so I guess the wood cells are smaller?

The seagrape grown on the beach, really close to the sea. Salt tolerant.

 

[Robson Valley]

Balsa "wood" doesn't have much woody fiber in it. Mostly foamy-looking tissue in a section under a microscope
and that also means very little lignin which gives many woods their color. Empty, that is filled with air.
Trees can't poop. They can transport wastes into leaves which fall off.
They can transport wastes into the core of the tree which we call "heart wood."
Does balsa have heartwood? Do all wastes go into old leaves (that's my problem)?

I don't know what controls bubble size. Distance from the surface? I don't know. Air pockets?
Now let a little air in and stop. Wait a couple of hours for flow then let in a little more air.

In many instances, baked beans control bubble size.

 

[Janne]

My bubbles are quite big after enjoying baked beans.....