Bio-inspired consolidants derived from crystalline nanocellulose for decayed wood.

Novel bio-inspired materials derived from crystalline nanocellulose (CNC) have been tested as wood consolidants. A suspension of CNC, produced by acid hydrolysis of cellulose and used as such or mixed with lignin and/or siloxane derivatives (PDMS), was applied on rotted wood samples of Norway spruce. X-Ray diffraction analysis on CNC powder showed high crystallinity index. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) measurement indicated a nearly uniform particle size distribution with an average hydrodynamic diameter for pure CNC smaller than that in the mixtures. Raman and FTIR spectroscopies suggested interactions between lignin, PDMS and CNC components. The storage modulus of wood samples, measured by Dynamic Mechanical Analysis on the same specimen before and after consolidation, confirmed the efficiency of pure CNC, which displayed a considerable improvement of stiffness. A substantial increase of E' was observed particularly for most decayed classes. These results suggest a closer interaction between nanocellulose and decayed wood.

Cleaning painted surfaces: evaluation of leaching phenomenon induced by solvents applied for the removal of gel residues.

Cleaning is one of the most important, delicate, and at the same time controversial processes in the conservation treatment of paintings. Although a strict definition of cleaning would be the removal of dirt, grime, or other accretions (surface cleaning), in the conservation field, cleaning is used in the broader meaning to include thinning/removing altered or "unwanted layers" of materials without damaging or altering the physicochemical properties of the surfaces to be preserved. The cleaning of unvarnished paintings is one of the most critical issues that are currently discussed. Several studies exist regarding different cleaning tools, such as gels, soaps, enzymes, ionic liquids, and foams, as well as various dry methods and lasers, but only a few have been performed on the risk associated with the use of water and organic solvents for the cleaning treatments in relation to the original paint binder. The aim of the study is to verify analytically the behavior of water gelling agents during cleaning treatments and the interaction of the following elements: water or organic solvents applied for the removal of gel residues with the original lipid paint binder. For this purpose, the study was conducted on a fragment of canvas painting (sixteenth to seventeenth century) of Soprintendenza per i Beni Storici, Artistici ed Etnoantropologici del Friuli Venezia Giulia (Superintendence for the Historical, Artistic and Ethno-anthropological Heritage of Friuli Venezia Giulia), Udine by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and scanning electron microscopy.