Natural polymers as alternative consolidants for the preservation of waterlogged archaeological wood

In recent years, there has been increased interest in examining alternative polymers for the conservation of archaeological artefacts, particularly waterlogged timbers, providing better, renewable, greener alternatives to poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). The degradation of PEG consolidants in the timbers of the sixteenth century warship Mary Rose has been examined and the rheological and thermal properties of PEG have been compared with its monomethyl and dimethyl ethers and several polysaccharide consolidants (chitosan, guar, and 2-hydroxyethyl cellulose) in order to evaluate their potential as alternative consolidants for the conservation of waterlogged wooden artefacts. Additionally, the effect of the polymers on the archaeological wood was characterised by thermogravimetric analysis and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The results suggest that the future of conservation technologies lies with polysaccharide consolidant materials, which show enhanced compatibility with wooden artefacts with no detectable side effects while also being cheap, with extremely low toxicity, renewable, and sustainably resourced.

[1]  Y. Shashoua,et al.  Degradation of PEG in the Warship Vasa , 2006 .

[2]  Gunnar Almkvist,et al.  Analysis of acids and degradation products related to iron and sulfur in the Swedish warship Vasa , 2008 .

[3]  Eric May,et al.  Molecular Bacterial Diversity in the Timbers of the Tudor Warship the Mary Rose , 2008 .

[4]  R. Bodîrlău.  FOURIER TRANSFORM INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY AND THERMAL ANALYSIS OF LIGNOCELLULOSE FILLERS TREATED WITH ORGANIC ANHYDRIDES , 2009 .

[5]  Piero Baglioni,et al.  Cellulose as a renewable resource for the synthesis of wood consolidants , 2010 .

[6]  G. Gerbaud,et al.  Study of interactions between polyethylene glycol and archaeological wood components by 13C high-resolution solid-state CP-MAS NMR , 2007 .

[7]  Y. Shashoua,et al.  Formic and acetic acids in archaeological wood. A comparison between the Vasa Warship, the Bremen Cog, the Oberländer Boat and the Danish Viking Ships , 2006 .

[8]  Mark Jones,et al.  Heritage Microbiology and Science , 2008 .

[9]  L. Bell,et al.  The sinking of the Mary Rose warship: a medieval mystery solved? , 2009 .

[10]  Søren Hvilsted,et al.  Characterisation of the polyethylene glycol impregnation of the Swedish warship Vasa and one of the Danish Skuldelev Viking ships , 2007 .

[11]  Robert Kliger,et al.  Strategy for developing a future support system for the Vasawarship and evaluating its mechanical properties , 2013, Heritage Science.

[12]  H. Schroeder,et al.  'True British sailors' : a comment on the origin of the men of the Mary Rose. , 2010 .

[13]  Giuseppina Di Giulio,et al.  Synthesis of hydroxylated oligoamides for their use in wood conservation , 2013 .

[14]  P. Parashar,et al.  Mechanical properties of guar gum, polyacrylonitrile and their composites , 1992 .

[15]  A. Burke.  Evaluation of Chitosan As a Potential Medical Iron (III) Ion Adsorbent , 2000 .

[16]  Magnus Sandström,et al.  Sulfur and iron in shipwrecks cause conservation concerns. , 2006, Chemical Society reviews.

[17]  Ingmar Persson,et al.  Deterioration of the seventeenth-century warship Vasa by internal formation of sulphuric acid , 2002, Nature.

[18]  S. Tokura,et al.  Molecular Weight Dependent Antimicrobial Activity by Chitosan , 1997 .

[19]  Nicola Macchioni,et al.  A methodological approach in the evaluation of the efficacy of treatments for the dimensional stabilisation of waterlogged archaeological wood , 2010 .

[20]  G. Gerbaud,et al.  Dynamics property recovery of archaeological-wood fibers treated with polyethylene glycol demonstrated by high-resolution solid-state NMR , 2012, Cellulose.

[21]  Hartmut Kutzke,et al.  New materials used for the consolidation of archaeological wood–past attempts, present struggles, and future requirements , 2012 .

[22]  Geoffrey Daniel,et al.  Microbial decay of waterlogged archaeological wood found in Sweden Applicable to archaeology and conservation , 1999 .

[23]  Gunnar Almkvist,et al.  Degradation of polyethylene glycol and hemicellulose in the Vasa , 2007 .

[24]  Gunnar Almkvist,et al.  Fenton-induced degradation of polyethylene glycol and oak holocellulose. A model experiment in comparison to changes observed in conserved waterlogged wood , 2008 .