scholarly journals A review of analytical methods for assessing preservation in waterlogged archaeological wood and their application in practice

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsty E. High ◽  
Kirsty E. H. Penkman
Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 1113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liuyang Han ◽  
Xingling Tian ◽  
Tobias Keplinger ◽  
Haibin Zhou ◽  
Ren Li ◽  
...  

Structural and chemical deterioration and its impact on cell wall mechanics were investigated for visually intact cell walls (VICWs) in waterlogged archaeological wood (WAW). Cell wall mechanical properties were examined by nanoindentation without prior embedding. WAW showed more than 25% decrease of both hardness and elastic modulus. Changes of cell wall composition, cellulose crystallite structure and porosity were investigated by ATR-FTIR imaging, Raman imaging, wet chemistry, 13C-solid state NMR, pyrolysis-GC/MS, wide angle X-ray scattering, and N2 nitrogen adsorption. VICWs in WAW possessed a cleavage of carboxyl in side chains of xylan, a serious loss of polysaccharides, and a partial breakage of β-O-4 interlinks in lignin. This was accompanied by a higher amount of mesopores in cell walls. Even VICWs in WAW were severely deteriorated at the nanoscale with impact on mechanics, which has strong implications for the conservation of archaeological shipwrecks.


2011 ◽  
Vol 38 (11) ◽  
pp. 2957-2967 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianna Giachi ◽  
Chiara Capretti ◽  
Ines D. Donato ◽  
Nicola Macchioni ◽  
Benedetto Pizzo

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 2015
Author(s):  
Federica Antonelli ◽  
Marco Bartolini ◽  
Marie-Laure Plissonnier ◽  
Alfonso Esposito ◽  
Giulia Galotta ◽  
...  

Waterlogged archaeological wood is exposed to a high risk of biological degradation during the post-excavation phases of storage and restoration. For this reason, often biocides must be used to preserve wooden remains. In the present work three essential oils (cinnamon, wild thyme, and common thyme) were tested as possible alternative biocides to use in the preservation of waterlogged archaeological wood. The oils were first tested in vitro to establish the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and to evaluate the biocidal activity on selected fungal strains. Then, the established MIC was applied on waterlogged archaeological wood samples and during an actual restoration treatment. The effectiveness of the oils was evaluated through cultural analyses, ATP quantification, and next-generation sequencing. The results showed that the oils caused a significant decrease in the vitality of fungal mycelia grown in vitro and of the microbiota present in treated wood and storage water. Furthermore, an influence on the composition of the bacterial communities of treated wood samples was observed. Although further tests are needed to evaluate interferences with the materials used during restoration procedures, essential oils could be considered as a possible alternative to the currently used biocide.


Archaeometry ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 50 (5) ◽  
pp. 855-876 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. CAPRETTI ◽  
N. MACCHIONI ◽  
B. PIZZO ◽  
G. GALOTTA ◽  
G. GIACHI ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 49-58
Author(s):  
Alessandra Papacchini ◽  
Simona Dominici ◽  
Giuseppina Di Giulio ◽  
Marco Fioravanti ◽  
Antonella Salvini

2016 ◽  
Vol 88 (10-11) ◽  
pp. 969-977 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily McHale ◽  
Susan Braovac ◽  
Calin C. Steindal ◽  
Richard B. Gillis ◽  
Gary G. Adams ◽  
...  

AbstractThe development of new materials for the consolidation of waterlogged archaeological wood from sustainable sources is an important area of research, as the most widely used consolidant today is petroleum based. Ideally a new consolidant will interact with the existing wood structure, ensuring maximum compatibility. Lignin is often the major component remaining in archaeological wood, as it is less susceptible to degradation than holocellulose. Therefore, in order to maximise the potential for interaction with the wood cells, lignin-like oligomers have been synthesized from isoeugenol using a water soluble copper salen catalyst at pH 10, giving a weight average Mw of 1.6 kDa. Analysis by NMR spectroscopy has shown that the oligomers have a lignin-like structure with β-O-4′, β-β′ and β-5′ connections. A 10 w/w% solution of the oligomers in ethyl acetate was found to thoroughly penetrate 1 cm3 samples of waterlogged archaeological wood (density of 0.146 g/mL, maximum water content of 620%) after 14 days impregnation, as determined by FTIR spectroscopy. No impregnation material could be seen by SEM, suggesting that it coats the cell walls upon drying. This indicates that dehydrogenated polymers penetrate waterlogged archaeological wood well and have the potential to be developed into consolidants.


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