Book and Paper Preservation

Most modern paper lacks the durability and permanence that has characterized its use since its earhest application in recording the history of man and his civilization. Although fundamental papermaking techniques have changed Kttle in nearly 2000 years, two innovations in the 19th century, namely (i) the use of alum as a component of size, and (ii) the replacement of cotton fiber by wood pulp, are responsible for this predicament. 

There has been an unbelievable development in the production of documents since the invention of printing with movable letters by Gutenberg. Within a short period of time, the necessary fibers for paper production could no longer be supplied by rags. After an intense search wood was discovered as an alternative. Ground wood pulp was used and later also chemical pulp, whereas in the latter the lignin is removed in a chemical process and so a woodfree pulp is produced. 

William Barrow was one of the first to describe the problem and correctly identify the cause at the Virginia State Library [2] begiiming in the 1930s. Prior to his work, book and paper conservators relied as much on art as on science. While 

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The discovery and the use of wood pulp (1840 by Keller) and acid sizing, mostly with alum or aluminum sulfate (1807 by Illig), are the main reasons for the current problems of deterioration of books in libraries und archives. Even at that time it was known that acid-sized wood pulp paper was not as stable against aging as traditionally made rag paper. Today the books most threatened by deterioration are those that were made in the last 150 years and not, as many people may assume, the older works from centuries ago. 

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As a practicing conservator with over twenty-five years experience in book and paper conservation, I view with approbation the increasing number of young people who are choosing this profession. My colleagues and I welcome the opportunity to train them in the important task of preserving our artistic, literary, and scientific heritage. I find the work and interest of conservation scientists extremely helpful. 

DEZ [Diethyl zinc] A process for preserving books and documents by treatment with diethyl zinc vapor, which neutralizes ary residual acidity from the papermaking process. The articles are placed in a low-pressure chamber and suffused by diethyl zinc vapor. This vapor reacts with the moisture in the paper to yield zinc oxide, which neutralizes the acid. The process was developed by Texas Alkyls (a joint company of Akzo and Hercules) and the U S. Library of Congress. A pilot plant was set up in 1988, capable of treating batches of 300 books, and plans to build two larger plants were announced in 1989. 

He similarly annotated Forman s essays on the Heavens , paraphrased them, and checked Forman s figures against other sources, at one point finding Forman s calculations lacking in comparison with those included in Edward Sherbourne s tables in his edition of The Sphere of M. Manilius (1675). Ashmole died in 1692, having ensured that Forman s papers were preserved with the rest of his collection of manuscripts, books, and rarities in the newly founded Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. 

Books—Conservation and restoration—Congresses. 2. Paper—Preservation—Congresses. 3. Textile fabrics— Preservation—Congresses. 

The striking Increase In chemiluminescence Intensity from paper when the humidity Is altered supports an earlier suggestion that damage may result from such cyclic treatment ( ), and Is consistent with the familiar lore that preservation of books and other materials Is best achieved under conditions of constant humidity. 

The main cause for paper deterioration in libraries and archives is the acid catalyzed hydrolysis of cellulose, the ingredient that gives permanence to the paper. The aging permanence of paper is closely coimected with the add concentration in the paper. The priority in preservation measures is in most cases the dead-dification of acid paper. Today, more than 70 years after Barrow s pioneering work, mass deacidification of books and archive materials has become a commerdal reality. 

Wei T o Associates, developers of a nonaqueous liquid deacidification process, derives its name from an ancient Qiinese god regarded as the protector of books. The National Archives of Canada operated a treatment facility in Ottawa with a capacity of about 40000 books per year until 2002. The process is based on the work conducted by Richard D. Smith, a graduate student at the University of Chicago in the mid-1960s. In 1989, Union Carbide acquired the exclusive rights of the process and intend to market the technique as part of a paper preservation service unit... 

D. N.-S. Hon, Critical Evaluation of Mass Deacidification Processes for Book Preservation, in Historic Textile and Paper Materials III, ACS Symp. Ser. 1989, 410, Chap. 2. 

For different types of collections, this balance is differently defined. For example paper conservation treatments commonly undertaken in the museum conservation laboratory would be impractical in a Hbrary archive having a far greater collection size. The use of treatments for mass paper quantities would be unacceptable in the art museum. Documents in archives and books in Hbraries serve a different goal from art objects in a museum. Their use value Hes primarily in their information rather than in an intrinsic esthetic value. Whereas optimal preservation of that information value requires preservation of the object itself, a copy or even a completely different format could serve the same purpose. 

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