Non-destructive Assessment of Wood Decay and Termite Attack in Southern Pine Sapwood

Field methods for evaluating wood decay and termite attack lack a means for quantitative measurement of weight loss or residual strength. Quantitative relationships between speed of impact-induced waves travelling parallel to the grain and residual compressive strength have been demonstrated in softwood attacked by brown-rot fungi, but such quantitative relationships have not been developed between wave speed and termite attack. We tested Southern Pine sapwood stakes that were vertically inserted half their length in soil in a Southern Pine forest in southern Mississippi. Results showed that measurement of both speed and attenuation of a reciprocating impact-induced wave will yield quantitative information on the extent of total biodegradation in Southern Pine sapwood that has been attacked by natural populations of termites and decay fung