Electrochemical in situ impregnation of wood using a copper nail as source for copper

A new method for copper impregnation of wood in structures was suggested and tested in laboratory scale with specimen of new pine sapwood. A copper nail and a steel screw were placed in the wood, and an electric direct current field was applied, so the copper nail was anode and the screw was cathode. At the anode, copper ions were generated. The copper ions were transported into the wood by electromigration (movement of ions in an applied electric field) towards the cathode, and a volume between the two electrodes was thereby impregnated. Copper also moved to a lesser degree in the opposite direction, probably due to capillary effects, and a smaller volume behind the anode was impregnated as well. The impregnation perpendicular to the grain was limited compared to the one along the grain. The highest Cu concentrations were obtained close to the anode.