Fungi from the genus Chlorociboria are known for their production of the blue-green quinonic pigment xylindein. Extracted xylindein has been the subject of investigations ranging from fabric dying to use a coloring agent in paint, and shows potential as an organic semiconductor in organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and other technologies. However,...
Woodturner, artist, and scientist, Claudia Andersen, describes various anatomical features of wood, from the differences between softwoods and hardwoods to the various types of spalting. Over the past year, they have learned and developed their skills in woodturning. In this project, they accompany one woodturned piece with a description of...
Wood-staining fungal pigments have potential uses as colorants for wood and textiles. Traditionally, organic solvents have been used as carriers for these pigments. However, other environmentally-friendly and more readily available carriers must be found. Natural oils have the potential to carry these pigments but have demonstrated color loss over relatively...
During the 1400s – 1600s, spalted wood was an expensive commodity used in marquetry style artworks across primarily Germany and Italy. It fell out of favor during the Industrial Revolution, but is currently experiencing resurgence in popularity with US woodturners. How spalted wood is used, and what types of spalted...
Scytalidium ganodermophthorum (Xylogone ganodermophthora) is known as a yellow-pigmenting spalting fungus. However, recent observations have indicated that the dichloromethane-extracted pigment produced by S. ganodermophthorum can vary in color from yellow to green to red to purple, depending on the age of the fungus at harvesting. The timeline and mechanisms behind...
Forest composition in Paraguay has been in a state of change for the past half century due to land management practices, forest fragmentation, and deforestation for agriculture. How these factors affect dendrological diversity and wood anatomy in Paraguay is not well understood. This thesis documents Paraguayan forest composition on the...
Natural dyes have been used to color textiles for centuries, but with the shift to mass production, the use of synthetic dyes has increased due to their lower cost and easy manufacturing volume. However, synthetic dyes (such as disperse blue dyes 106 and 124) have been reported to cause skin...
Commercial methodologies for producing fungal pigments are of worldwide interest due to the desire to move away from synthetic dyes. Chlorociboria species and Scytalidium species have been reported to produce sufficient yields of pigments for commercial production and have attracted special attention because of their use in spalted wood applications....
Spalting fungi show strong potential as natural colorants on a variety of materials, specifically textiles and wood. Four species of spalting fungi are currently utilized in this manner: Scytalidium cuboideum, which produces a red pigment called draconin red, Scytalidium ganodermophthorum, that produces an unknown yellow pigment, and Chlorociboria aeruginosa and...
With the resurgence in the interest of using natural textile dyes, a solution must be found that will overcome the limitations of traditional natural dyes. This solution must also be safer for both humankind and the environment than are synthetic dyes. This study compares the colorfastness of commercially available synthetic...