Penetration and distribution of rosin along the longitudinal axis of round bamboo culm

Abstract

The information of rosin penetration and distribution along the longitudinal axis of round bamboo culm is of great significance for hydrophobic treatment of round bamboo with rosin. In this study, mercury intrusion porosimetry and scanning electron microscopy were used to determine the rosin distribution at the cellular and subcellular levels. The results showed that rosin penetrated to the middle of bamboo culm with a length of 150 mm from both ends. For the longitudinal direction of bamboo culm, rosin is concentrated in the two ends of bamboo culm, and almost evenly distributed in the rest parts. Moreover, rosin mostly penetrated into small pores (diameter ≤ 0.08 μm), while larger pores such as lumen (diameter > 8.00 μm) were penetrated less. The results of water permeability tests showed that both water absorption and absorption rate gradually decreased along the longitudinal axis, which coincides with the amount of penetrated rosin.