Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is used as a UV light absorber to protect wood matter from photodegradation. In this paper, interactions between wood and TiO2 coating are studied, and the efficiency of the coating is evaluated. For the experiments, two wood species were chosen: beech (Fagus sylvatica) and pine (Pinus sylvestris). Molecular and physical modifications in coated and uncoated wood exposed to UV radiation were investigated with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). UV-VIS spectroscopy was used to describe the absorption of UV light by the TiO2 planar particles chosen for the experiment. It was demonstrated that TiO2 coating protects wood against photodegradation to a limited extent. TEM micrographs showed fissures in the wood matter around clusters of TiO2 particles in beech wood.

Department of Chemistry and Chemical Technologies Faculty of Wood Sciences and Technology Technical University in Zvolen T G Masaryka 24 960 53 Zvolen Slovakia

Institute of Inorganic Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences 250 68 Husinec Řež Czech Republic

Institute of Physics Faculty of Physics Astronomy and Informatics Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń Grudziądzka 5 87 100 Torun Poland

Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences Na Slovance 1999 2 182 21 Prague Czech Republic

University Centre for Energy Efficient Buildings Czech Technical University Prague 273 43 Buštěhrad Czech Republic

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