Schmid Thomas, Hidde Julia, Grünier Sophie, Jungnickel Robert, Dariz Petra, Riedel Jens, Neuhaus Birger
Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -Prüfung, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
School of Analytical Sciences Adlershof (SALSA), Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany.
Polymers (Basel). 2021 Jun 27;13(13):2112. doi: 10.3390/polym13132112.
Microscope slide collections represent extremely valuable depositories of research material in a natural history, forensic, veterinary, and medical context. Unfortunately, most mounting media of these slides deteriorate over time, with the reason for this not yet understood at all. In this study, Raman spectroscopy, ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, and different types of light microscopy were used to investigate the ageing behaviour of naturally aged slides from museum collections and the experimentally aged media of Canada balsam and Permount™, representing a natural and a synthetic resin, respectively, with both being based on mixtures of various terpenes. Whereas Canada balsam clearly revealed chemical ageing processes, visible as increasing colouration, Permount™ showed physical deterioration recognisable by the increasing number of cracks, which even often impacted a mounted specimen. Noticeable changes to the chemical and physical properties of these mounting media take decades in the case of Canada balsam but just a few years in the case of Permount™. Our results question whether or not Canada balsam should really be regarded as a mounting medium that lasts for centuries, if its increasing degree of polymerisation can lead to a mount which is no longer restorable.
在自然历史、法医、兽医和医学领域,显微镜载玻片收藏是极为珍贵的研究材料库。不幸的是,这些载玻片的大多数封固剂会随着时间推移而变质,其原因目前完全不明。在本研究中,利用拉曼光谱、紫外可见(UV-Vis)光谱以及不同类型的光学显微镜,对来自博物馆收藏的自然老化载玻片以及分别代表天然树脂和合成树脂的加拿大香脂和Permount™实验老化封固剂的老化行为进行了研究,这两种封固剂均基于各种萜烯的混合物。加拿大香脂明显呈现出化学老化过程,表现为颜色加深;而Permount™则显示出物理劣化,表现为裂纹数量增加,甚至常常影响到所装裱的标本。这些封固剂的化学和物理性质发生明显变化,加拿大香脂的情况需要数十年,而Permount™的情况只需数年。我们的研究结果引发质疑:如果加拿大香脂不断增加的聚合程度会导致标本无法修复,那么它是否真的应被视为能持续数百年的封固剂。