School of Biosciences, National Centre for Macromolecular Hydrodynamics (NCMH), University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, Loughborough, LE12 5RD, UK.
School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK.
Sci Rep. 2023 Mar 4;13(1):3664. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-29785-5.
The evaluation of two terpene-derived polymers, termed TPA6 and TPA7, as possible consolidants for archaeological wood was carried out. The overall objective of this work was to expand the non-aqueous treatment toolkit which is available for the conservation of the highly degraded Oseberg collection. The wood artefacts which were found on the Oseberg ship were treated with alum in the early twentieth century, leading to the formation of sulfuric acid and to the precarious state that they are in today. Some of these artefacts cannot be treated with conventional aqueous consolidants, like polyethylene glycol, due to their highly degraded and/or reconstructed nature. This study sought to examine the level of penetration of the polymers in archaeological wood and to evaluate their consolidative effect. Both TPA6 and TPA7 were soluble in isopropanol and had a M of 3.9 and 4.2 kDa respectively. A number of archaeological wood specimens were immersed in solutions of these polymers. Their penetration and effects were evaluated using weight and dimensional change, colour change, infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and hardness tests. Both polymers successfully penetrated the wood specimens, with a higher concentration found on the surface versus the core. Additionally, both polymers appeared to increase the hardness of the specimen surfaces. Increasing the polymer concentration and soaking time in future investigations could potentially facilitate the penetration to the wood cores.
评估了两种萜烯衍生聚合物，分别称为 TPA6 和 TPA7，作为可能的考古木材加固剂。这项工作的总体目标是扩大非水治疗工具包，为高度降解的奥塞伯格藏品的保护提供更多选择。在 20 世纪早期，在奥塞伯格号船上发现的木制品用明矾处理过，导致硫酸的形成和它们目前的脆弱状态。由于其高度降解和/或重构的性质，其中一些文物不能用传统的水性加固剂，如聚乙二醇进行处理。本研究旨在研究聚合物在考古木材中的渗透程度，并评估其加固效果。TPA6 和 TPA7 均溶于异丙醇，分子量分别为 3.9 和 4.2 kDa。将一些考古木材标本浸入这些聚合物的溶液中。使用重量和尺寸变化、颜色变化、红外光谱、扫描电子显微镜和硬度测试来评估它们的渗透和效果。两种聚合物都成功地渗透了木材标本，表面的浓度高于核心。此外，两种聚合物似乎都增加了标本表面的硬度。在未来的研究中，增加聚合物浓度和浸泡时间可能有助于聚合物渗透到木材核心。
