Effect of initial moisture content on the anti-swelling efficiency of thermally modified Scots pine sapwood treated in a high-pressure reactor under saturated steam

The effects of initial moisture content (MC) on anti-swelling efficiency (ASE), mass loss (ML), and equilibrium MC (EMC) at 65% relative humidity of thermally modified Scots pine sapwood under saturated steam (TMSA) has been investigated. ML during the TMSA process was higher with the specimens containing moisture before modification compared with initially dry specimens. Surprisingly, the EMC of the modified specimens with initial moisture was higher than that observed with the modified wood that was initially dry before the modification process. Higher initial MC before thermal modification results in a lower ASE.