192 American Archivist / Vol. 53 / Spring 1990 Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021

Current Trends in Preservation Research and Development

GEORGE MARTIN CUNHA

Abstract: In the 1980s, librarians and archivists accepted responsibility for conservation management as a vitally important aspect of their work. Their increased role in this area influenced research and development trends towards a concentration on mass techniques. These included environmental control with emphasis on preservation rather than creature comfort, fire prevention, and disaster recovery, but developments in mass deacidification have eclipsed all else. And now there are indications that developments in the mass strengthening of paper could make mass deacidification by itself obsolete. Archivists need to become familiar with these developments so as to evaluate their use and/or modify them to suit particular archival needs.

About the author: In the 1960s, George Cunha, conservator at the Boston Athenaeum, realized that the then accepted methods for the care of books and paper records were inadequate. He pushed for the creation of regional cooperative centers, and in 1973 the North East Document Conservation Center (NEDCC) was established with Cunha as the first director. It was there and elsewhere that the concept of records conservation began to change from treatment of records as single objects to today's emphasis on the treatment of collections in their entirety. This emphasis has remained central to his work as a writer, teacher, and consultant. Cunha currently serves as adjunct professor of conservation at the College of Library and Information Science, University of Kentucky. Preservation Research and Development 193

THE MAJOR CHANGES DURING the last two treatment of their materials. In 1963, the decades in the methods for the preservation Englishman Bernard Middleton published of books and paper records did not come a landmark study, A History of English Craft easily. The transition began when archi- Book Binding Techniques, in which struc- vists, librarians, and curators, who had long ture and conservation considerations were relied on the expertise of bookbinders and emphasized.3 A little later in the decade, Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 paper conservators for the preservation of Paul Banks of the Newberry Library stressed their materials, began to realize that those the need for a systematic collection-level 4 highly skilled craftsmen, with their mu- approach. Y. P. Kathpalia's 1968 Con- seum-oriented practices based on the treat- servation and Restoration of Archive Ma- ment of books and records as single objects, terials, though now outdated, represented could not possibly begin to take care of the the first attempt to broaden the discussion vast amount of material that needed their to include conservation and collection-level 5 attention. Librarians and archivists also be- care of archives. came painfully aware of the major prob- The importance of good housekeeping, lems facing them in finding money to pay building maintenance, security, and fire for the work—even if far greater numbers protection was obvious to many at that time of craftsmen could somehow be found to (curators and administrators as well as book do it. Changes had to be made. Ways had and paper people) who were working in to be found to physically care for great libraries and archives. Also beginning to quantities of materials with fewer people emerge was an awareness of the impor- and on a low cost-per-unit basis. tance of air conditioning for stabilizing the climate, and an appreciation of the dam- Collections Conservation aging effects of sunlight and fluorescent lighting on paper. Vacuum fumigation and Although conservation management as sterilization were the methods of choice for we understand it now did not exist three dealing with insect infestations and mold. decades ago, some of the book and paper However, most curators and administra- people then working with libraries and ar- tors, even those who were beginning to ap- chives made substantial contributions to the preciate the importance of those things for development of the field. In addition to the book care, equivocated on the establish- ongoing work on deacidification by Bar- ment of routine preservation practices de- row, Smith, and others, Caroline Horton in pending on how pressed they were for funds New York was stressing the importance of and how much time the other aspects of the methodical treatment of entire collec- management demanded of them. Early on tions over the salvage of individual "basket 1 the book and paper repair people began to cases." Harold Tribolet at the Lakeside affiliate with the American Group, Inter- Press in Chicago was emphasizing the need national Institute for Conservation (now the for quality control of materials and for high 2 American Institute for Conservation) to standards of workmanship. Horton's and benefit by association with museum con- Tribolet's exhortations were most impor- tant because collections managers were be- ginning to become involved in the in-house 3Bernard Middleton, A History of English Craft Book Binding Techniques (New York and London: Hafner, 1963). 'Caroline Horton, Cleaning and Preserving Bind- 4Paul N. Banks, "Some Problems in Book Con- ings and Related Materials (Chicago: American Li- servation," Library Resources & Technical Services brary Association, 1969). 12 (1968): 330-38. 2Harold Tribolet, "Trends in Preservation," Li- 5Y. P. Kathpalia, Conservation and Restoration of brary Trends 13:2 (1964): 208-14. Archive Materials (Paris: UNESCO, 1973). 194 American Archivist / Spring 1990

servators and to have an outlet in which ciety of American Archivists and the they could be heard because most librarians American Library Association, there began and archivists were not listening. to be significant progress. It is difficult to By the early 1970s, there was an emerg- pinpoint when and why curators and ad- ing appreciation of the importance of con- ministrators began to get continuously and servation in some of the major libraries. In actively involved. Unquestionably one of Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 1965 the director of the Boston Athen- the reasons was the vision and foresight of aeum, Walter Whitehill, told this author to people like Howard Lowell, Robert Patter- look deeply into the matter and submit a son, Paul Banks, Pamela Darling, Susan proposal for his consideration. The New- Swartzburg, Sally Buchanan, Carolyn berry Library had an active program from Morrow, and other dedicated librarians and 1967. In 1968 Fraser Poole, assistant di- archivists. Their names and the names of rector for preservation at the Library of others who were librarians and archivists, Congress, hired Peter Waters to develop rather than book and paper restorers, began and implement a preservation plan for the to appear under the titles of articles on pres- collections. The North East Document ervation in the professional and technical Conservation Center was established in 1973 literature. They spearheaded the increased as the nation's first regional center for the interest in preservation within SAA and ALA care of library and archival materials. This as well as in state and local professional was the direct outcome of WhitehilPs 1965 groups, partly by scheduling and organiz- directive to Captain Cunha. The center's ing frequent seminars and workshops for staff soon began to receive frequent invi- their colleagues. Their influence was re- tations to address meetings of local, state, flected in the literature, which began to in- and regional associations of librarians and clude discussions on preservation from the archivists. In 1971 the library school at the collection manager's point of view. The University of Rhode Island offered the first object was to provide practical guidance for course in library conservation available in the care of books and paper records rather the United States as an elective for students than erudite technical essays on causes and seeking a degree in library science. Colum- effects of damage (the latter usually devoid bia University's School of Library Service of any acknowledgement that preservation soon followed suit, introducing a full course was only one of the many equally impor- in 1976, and the first full-fledged program tant problems encountered regularly by li- for library conservators and preservation brarians and archivists). At the same time, administrators in 1981.6 However, in June librarians and archivists began to cooperate of this year (1990), Columbia announced with conservators and conservation tech- that it intends to discontinue the School of nicians, chemists, and physicists in re- Library Service. Other institutions are con- search laboratories and in business and sidering picking up the conservation train- industry on the identification of conserva- ing programs but there is no firm information tion problems and solutions for them.7 on that matter at this writing. An example of the cooperation was the Later in the 1970s, when librarians and increasing acceptance by managers of the archivists began to get more interested in importance of preventive maintenance and conservation, first as individuals, then with the encouragement and support of the So- 7See in particular, Paul N. Banks, "The Scientist, the Scholar, and the Book Conservator: Some Thoughts on Book Conservation as a Profession," Atti Delia 6Paul N. Banks to Anne R. Kenncy, 22 May 1990 XUXRiunione Delia S.I.P.S., Siena, 23-27 Septem- (E-mail). ber 1976. Preservation Research and Development 195

the need for the development and use of cover them all in an essay such as this but improved methods for climate control, the some must be mentioned if only briefly. control of light, housekeeping, security from Climate control. Until recently it was theft and vandalism, fire prevention, flood generally agreed that close, positive cli- control, building maintenance, and storage mate control at 66°-70°F and 45-55 percent and handling. Their decisions began to re- relative humidity (RH) was best for most Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 flect those preservation considerations; their paper library and archival materials.10 The own scholarship and administrative exper- temperature criteria are a compromise be- tise; and an understanding of the legal, aes- tween what is best for books in libraries thetic, humanistic, and historical and requirements for the comfort of staff ramifications of the emerging problems. The and patrons. Reducing the temperature in merits of cooperative conservation were a stack area from 68°F to 50°F will cut the becoming obvious. Soon efforts along those rate of chemical deterioration (oxidation and lines began to be seen at local and regional acid hydrolysis) in materials stored there by levels as well as within the professional or- 50 percent, i.e., double their shelf life. ganizations. Among the seven topics dis- However, 50° would be untenable any- cussed at the SAA/NEH Conference on where but in a vault or in isolated stack Setting Priorities for Historical Records areas for special materials. (1977), conservation and preservation were The 45-55 percent RH recommendation ranked as most deserving of outside fund- is also a compromise. Lower humidity, not ing. By 1980, the Society of American Ar- more than 40 percent, is best for the pres- chivists had established a Basic Archival ervation of audiovisual material (magnetic Conservation Program which included a se- tape, TV and moving picture film, photo- ries of conservation workshops, a consul- graphic material, microforms, etc.) but 50 tant service, and the preparation and percent is best for paper objects, which are publication of a basic manual, Archives & a vast majority in most archives. Current Manuscripts: Conservation. A Manual on thinking is that when audiovisual materials Physical Care and Management.,8 In 1987, cannot be isolated in a mini-environment, with funding from NEH, SAA began a na- the overall humidity in the building should tional study, under the direction of Paul be kept between 40 percent and 50 per- 11 Conway, of preservation programs in U.S. cent. It is far more important to stabilize archival facilities. By 1989 the society had both temperature and humidity at points as drafted a nationwide strategy for archival near as possible to the optimum conditions preservation and an SAA task force was than to strive for optimum conditions with appointed to review this strategy and de- heating and cooling machinery that is un- velop means for carrying the work for- equal to the task and likely to produce con- ward.9 stantly fluctuating temperature and humidity levels. Research and Development Insect and mold control. Freezing for destruction of insects is often useful but it The trends in research and development is less effective than chemical treatment. underway now are too many and varied to

'"Robert G. Mathey et al., Air Quality Criteria for 8Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler, Archives & Manu- Storage of Paper-Based Archival Records (Gaithers- scripts: Conservation (Chicago: Society of American burg, MD: National Bureau of Standards, 1983). Archivists, 1983). "National Research Council, Preservation of His- 9SAA Preservation Section Newsletter 6:1 (1990): torical Records (Washington, DC: National Academy 2-4. See also Paul Conway's article in this issue. Press, 1986). 196 American Archivist / Spring 1990

Chemical fumigation with ethylene oxide sprinkler heads with highly reliable valving in a vacuum chamber for insect and fungus and other controls are, as reported by John control, though effective, has been aban- Morris, widely used in new construction doned by most librarians and archivists, ap- for records storage facilities.12 prehensive about the use of this toxic Because of their extra sensitivity (com- chemical and the stringent requirements for pared to the undoubtedly reliable heat-sens- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 its control. Instead, current trends favor ing devices), the development of control of those problems by careful ex- increasingly reliable smoke sensors has been amination of incoming materials, good a boon. Their generally earlier warnings housekeeping, maintenance, and climate sometimes can make fire suppression pos- control. That is commendable practice, but sible before sprinklers are activated. the apparent consensus by most managers The use of Halon 1301 chlorofluorocar- to abandon chemical fumigation entirely is bon (CFC) systems in buildings where there to be deplored. Housekeeping and climate is good compartmentation is effective, but control are often unequal to the task, and those systems are expensive to install, and ethylene oxide used under carefully moni- replenishment costs could be high, should tored conditions can be an effective and there be an accidental discharge of the gas. safe means of insect and mold control. Furthermore, halons are chlorofluorocar- Fire control. There has never been bons (hard hydrocarbons) that destroy the agreement on the use of sprinkler systems heat-absorbing ozone layer surrounding the for the suppression of fire in libraries and earth. There is now international agree- archives. In the past managers acknowl- ment, to which some countries unfortu- edged the effectiveness of sprinklers for nately do not yet subscribe, on the need to quenching flames but worried more about discontinue the manufacture and use of hard water than fire damage, particularly in older CFCs. In the United States, manufacturers libraries (built 1875-1950) housing free- are developing hydrochlorofluorocarbons standing basement-to-attic stacks without (soft hydrocarbons) as safe alternatives.13 fire resistant floors on each level. The sit- The advantage of the soft hydrocarbons is uation in some of those older buildings has that they break down in the atmosphere in- been improved by closing the openings un- stead of polluting it. Knowing the re- der the stack shelves, closing the stairway sources available to business and industry openings, and other compartmentation. Of there is reason to believe that soon there equal significance has been the develop- will be a complete family of safe soft re- ment of Halon fire suppression systems, placements for the hard CFCs. However, sophisticated early warning smoke detec- the suitability of such replacements for use tion systems, dry pipe sprinkler systems, in fire suppression will be known only after and fast-action stop-and-go sprinkler heads they have been completely developed and to minimize flooding damage if fire occurs. exhaustively tested. That could be several The idea years ago for dry pipe fire years in the future. suppression systems and on-and-off sprin- It is interesting to speculate why high- kler heads was good sense, but in the be- expansion foam generators are not widely ginning design difficulties limited their used in this country for fire suppression in reliability and usefulness. Since then man- ufacturers have resolved that problem by developing well-designed, highly reliable 12John Morris, "Fire Protection for the Library," piping systems for both cold weather con- The Construction Specifier (October 1989): 133-41. 13George M. Cunha, "Chlorofluorocarbons and the ditions (plastic) and normal temperatures Environment," Library Technology Reports 25 (Jan- (copper). Newly designed flow-control uary/February 1989): 71. Preservation Research and Development 197

libraries and archives. Foam quells fires portant recovery technique, but it requires rapidly by displacing the oxygen in the costly labor both for freeze-stabilization spaces into which it is released and, be- during the recovery operation and for later cause of the very low percentage of water freeze-drying. in foam, wetting is insignificant. The Brit- A new time-saving method has been de- ish Public Records Office in Kew uses foam veloped by Document Reprocessors of San Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 generators for fire protection in some of its Francisco for drying freeze-stabilized paper spaces, but it is regarded as impractical in objects without the need for sublimation.15 large open areas. The saving is accomplished by eliminating Arson has been the principal cause of the refrigeration cold-traps on which the fire in libraries and archives, but the de- water vapor from the frozen books is col- velopment in the last decade of increas- lected as ice during freeze-drying and later ingly sensitive and highly reliable burglar removed. Instead, the frozen books and the alarm systems has helped considerably to chilled shelves and containers holding them reduce that particular form of vandalism. in the vacuum chamber are warmed, con- Storage. The benefits of compact shelv- verting the ice in the books to water vapor; ing for storage are undeniable but that in- at the same time the process creates a par- novation has not been without cost. The tial pressure differential between the wet compacted bulk of the shelves and the books and the environment in the chamber. closely packed materials on them restrict That differential keeps the moisture mov- the movement of air. In some instances that ing out of the frozen mass. The water vapor has been identified as a cause of mold prob- accumulating in the chamber is continu- lems, and it also may demand more smoke ously removed by a sophisticated system detection devices and sprinklers for protec- of vacuum pumps and separators until the tion. books are dry. Freezing and freeze-drying. For years Freeze-stabilization and freeze- and vac- the stabilization by freezing of water-dam- uum-drying are suitable for wet paper but aged materials, followed by freeze-drying they are not appropriate for other materials, at times and places convenient for the own- e.g., microforms, photographic prints and ers of the materials, has been the preferred negatives, video film, and audio tapes and method. Freeze-stabilization is just that- disks. See Hendricks16 and others for guid- safeguarding against further harm to water- ance in handling those media. damaged materials by freezing them to pre- Space drying. Another method for re- vent the growth of mold and to minimize covery from water damage is the one of- the mechanical damage that would occur if fered by Cargocaire Engineering Corporation wet paper were to be handled in recovery of Amesbury, Massachusetts.17 It is a operations. Freeze-drying is a process by method for drying wet books and docu- which water (the ice in frozen books) is ments in situ. This system was originally removed by sublimation—a method for developed for industrial and military use. converting solid ice to water vapor without It is particularly suitable for situations where going through the liquid stage.14 Frost-free refrigerators are essentially sublimation de- vices. Freeze-drying is an effective and im- 15John Morris, "Mopping Up After Library Fires," Fire Prevention 220 (June 1989): 33-35. 16Klaus B. Hendriks and Brian Lesser, "Disaster Preparedness and Recovery: Photographic Mate- "George M. Cunha, "Recent Developments for the rials," American Archivist 46 (Winter 1983): 52-68. Mass Drying of Books," in Preservation of Paper 17Gunnar Askar, "Automatic Dehumidification and Textiles of Historic and Artistic Value (Washing- Through Continuous Duty Adsorption Dewpoint Con- ton, DC: American Chemical Society, 1977). trol," CargoCaire HoneyCombe Bulletin no. D165. 198 American Archivist / Spring 1990

the wetting has not been accompanied by that movement gets underway the other fire or other damage that will require struc- states will follow. Most university presses tural repairs. The drying is accomplished use alkaline paper for their hardbound pub- by circulating vast quantities of air from lications and some even for their paper- the water-soaked spaces through portable backs. Some publishing houses use it for honeycombed continuous-desiccant de- their better books. Others have flirted with Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 humidification machinery that has been the idea but most have not pursued it until placed on the damage site. The circulating now, primarily because of the problems of air extracts water vapor from the wet books cost and availability. Availability will soon and records, the wet floors, walls, ceilings, be a minor matter because nearly half of furniture, shelving, storage cabinets, car- the paper made in Europe is now by the pets and draperies, and all else in the room alkaline process and 15 percent of the paper until everything is dry and the ambient hu- made in America is alkaline—and both per- midity is reduced to the desired level. The centages are increasing rapidly. The major principle advantages are the savings in la- cost in producing alkaline paper is in con- bor costs and the fact that there is very little verting mills to the alkaline process, but possibility of further damage after the dis- once converted, their production costs (and aster because there is little if any need to ultimately the costs to the consumer) will handle material during the drying opera- be less. Some of the push for conversion tion. comes from the federal government, which Alkaline paper. The ever-increasing is going after acid-production paper mills manufacture and use of alkaline paper is of for polluting water supplies. Profit, always the utmost importance to library and ar- the prime mover in business and industry, chives conservation. Books and documen- will insure that a great many of those mills tary materials newly printed or written on in Europe and America that have not al- alkaline (acid-free) paper will not self-de- ready converted to the alkaline process will struct in a relatively short time because of do so soon in order to meet the competi- acid hydrolysis, as do books and records tion. Regardless of all the other benefits to made with alum/rosin-sized (acid-process) the community at large, this is a special paper. If books and records made with al- boon for librarians, archivists, public rec- kaline paper are kept in climate-controlled ords officials, book publishers, and the ac- environments, relatively free of the sulfuric ademic world in general. and nitrous oxides and other contaminants Recycled paper. Recycled paper is in polluted urban air, they should be in as something else. Regardless of the many good condition a hundred years from now important reasons for maximum use of re- as they are today. Think what that will mean cycled paper, the jury is still out in regard to the curators and administrators who will to its use for permanent/durable paper. The then be responsible for the collections. On effect of recycling, particularly repeated re- 12 October 1990 President Bush signed cycling, on cellulose, and the secondary ef- legislation requiring the establishment of a fects on strength and durability, aging, and national policy on permanent papers.18 optical brightness, for example, could make Several states are also aiming in that direc- recycled paper unsuitable for anything but tion and, based on past experience, when newsprint and other nonpermanent uses. Even for newsprint there could be a prob- lem because ink is difficult to remove from scrap paper in the recycling process. It has '"Public Law 101-423. Copies are available from the Superintendent of Documents for $1.00. Set Ab- been suggested that the general use of bey Newsletter 14:7 (November 1990):117. printing ink made from soybeans, rather than Preservation Research and Development 199

the petroleum-based inks that newspapers system outweighed all else and began their now use, would solve that problem. Al- development of the diethyl zinc (DEZ) though its feasibility remains to be seen, a process,20 which will soon be a commer- bill requiring soybean ink was presented to cially available service. The DEZ process the Kentucky State Legislature in March differs from the methoxy magnesium methyl

1990 in an effort to promote recycling in carbonate process in that it is a gaseous, Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 that state.19 rather than liquid, system. The pyrophoric Mass deacidification. In the last ten years characteristics of DEZ require rigid safety there has been much research and devel- precautions and very close supervision of opment in many areas of conservation, but the production operation. While the DEZ nothing has been as dramatic as the devel- process requires a fifty-hour cycle time, the opment in mass deacidification. Not too long chamber holds several thousand books per ago the problem of salvaging acid-stained cycle, resulting in far greater annual pro- and brittle paper seemed hopeless, and cus- duction than the Canadians' approximately todians were resigned to reliance on micro- thirty-five books per one-hour cycle time. forms for saving the information on brittle However, the end results, deacidification paper. During the 1970s there were several and buffering against future acid contami- well-established methods for deacidifica- nation, are equally good. tion of single sheets, but none was suitable Encouraged by the potential profits as for the simultaneous treatment of large well as the benefits, chemists and engineers quantities of paper. However, there emerged in the United States and elsewhere devel- in the scientific community a belief that the oped other processes for mass deacidifica- many hundreds of millions of embrittled tion.21 The ammonia process in India, books and paper records in libraries and although it is not permanent, is regularly archives could be saved. used at the Nehru Library in New Delhi By 1980 Dr. Richard Smith's success in because of its low cost. The cyclohexylam- developing the methoxy magnesium methyl ine carbonate (CHC) vapor phase deacidi- carbonate (MMM) nonaqueous solutions fication (VPD) process, an English (Wei T'o) for the deacidification of single development (1975), is a useful, modestly sheets encouraged him to investigate meth- priced, in-house method for the deacidifi- ods for using MMM in mass treatments. cation of large numbers of books. This en- With financial support from the National tails interleaving books on library shelves Library of Canada and National Archives (or boxes of documents) with envelopes of of Canada, and in collaboration with the CHC which, over a period of time, deaci- conservation staff at the archives, the first difies the paper. At the time of its intro- successful mass-deacidification facility in duction, CHC was maligned as a possible the world, using a liquid system, soon went carcinogen, but that has long since proven to be a canard. Although this is a relatively into production at the National Library of low-cost process, it does not buffer and Canada in Ottawa, where each year thou- therefore cannot be regarded as permanent. sands of books have since been treated. Sophisticated systems for spray deacidifi- About the same time, John Williams and George Kelley, chemists in the preserva- tion office at the Library of Congress, de- cided that the advantages of a gaseous 20George M. Cunha, "Mass Deacidification for Li- braries," Library Technology Reports 23 (May/June 1987): 361-472. 21George M. Cunha, "Mass Deacidification for Li- "Lexington (Kentucky) Herald/Leader, 17 March braries: 1989 Update," Library Technology Reports 1990. 25 (January/February 1989): 5-81. 200 American Archivist / Spring 1990

cation with solutions of methoxy magne- preselecting, so that masses of books or sium methyl carbonate (Wei To), such as boxed documents could be deacidified and the system at the Princeton University Li- those that require it could also be strength- braries, is another in-house alternative that ened at the same time. The need for such gives excellent results comparable to mass a system has long been recognized, but the treatment. The Viennese calcium salt/methyl scientific community until now has been Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 cellulose process for deacidification and slow in applying itself to that challenge. strengthening brittle, but not yet physically The FMC Corporation Lithium Divi- damaged, newsprint can be considered to sion's mass paper preservation system using be a mass system because it can treat si- magnesium butoxytriglycolate (MG-3) is, multaneously one or two, and sometimes according to an independent laboratory even three, blocks of several hundred sewn evaluation, effective in deacidifying and newsprint pages. The magnesium oxide buffering paper and increasing its tensile (Bookkeeper) process has been success- strength, tear resistance, and folding en- fully demonstrated in the laboratory and in durance.22 The company has sufficient a small-scale pilot plant in Ohio. An am- confidence in the process to have con- monia/ethylene oxide process (BPA), the structed a pilot plant at its headquarters in second method to become commercially Bessemer City, North Carolina, where they available (June 1988), is capable of treating are now doing demonstration runs on se- several million books, or the equivalent in lected institutions' books. boxed paper records, each year. This sys- The Viennese system also impregnates tem is regarded askance by some because the paper with cellulose ether (methyl cel- they fear possible outgassing of ethylene lulose) to strengthen it is a major step in oxide from treated books. That concern the right direction.23 So far it has been used seems to be unsupportable because the same mostly for the treatment of single text blocks chemical has long been used, with govern- from bound volumes of newsprint in which ment approval, in the processing of food- the pages have become brittle but have not stuffs and other commercial products. been physically damaged. Paper strengthening. Although the re- In 1978 Fausta Gallo at the Instituto di quirements for mass deacidification sys- Patologia del Libro in Rome reported evi- tems have been resolved, that is only half dence of increased strength in paper that of the solution to the problem of acid dam- had been treated with ethylene oxide.24 An age to paper. Deacidification of already ammonia/ethylene oxide process is now brittle paper is an exercise in futility. Al- being marketed by Information Conserva- though brittle books and paper records will tion, Inc. (ICI) of Greensboro, North Car- get no worse after deacidification, they will not improve either, and they are all too often still unusable. Mass deacidification is pri- 22Roger H. Van Eperon "To Whom it May Con- marily useful for new or nearly new ma- cern," 24 August 1990 in FMC Mass Paper Preser- terials in which acid damage has not made vation System: Independent Test Results (Bessemer them fragile. Mass deacidification has been City, NC: FMC Corporation, 1990). Van Eperon is a technical specialist with the Research Services Divi- a great step forward but there remains a sion, Institute of Paper Sciences and Technology, Inc., need for a mass treatment that will deaci- Atlanta, Georgia. dify and simultaneously (or within the same "Cunha, "Mass Deacidification for Libraries [1987]." run or cycle) strengthen acid-damaged pa- 24F. P. Gallo, "Methyl Bromide, Ethyl Oxide and per that has deteriorated beyond the point Ethylene Formaldehyde: Biological and Technologi- where deacidification alone is sufficient. An cal Problems Relating to the Treatment of Library Materials," Nouvi Annali Di Igiene e Microbiologia ideal system would eliminate the need for 9:1 (1978): 34-53. Preservation Research and Development 201

olina, and Book Preservation Associates of mass operation, perhaps as a continuous- (BPA) in Carlstadt, New Jersey.25 Their belt production-line operation. chemists are aware of Gallo's observation. The Nova Tran Corporation's Parylene The British Library is promoting a graft- process for conformal coating of artifacts polymerization technique as a solution for has already proved its worth in the salvage the problem of brittle paper. Research by and preservation of fragile museum ob- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 scientists at the University of Surrey has jects. It has also been demonstrated that satisfied the preservation office at the li- Parylene is useful for strengthening fragile brary that it is possible to strengthen brittle single sheet records and other paper objects paper by saturating it with a short-chained including books. Now that Union Carbide monomer such as methyl maciylate and then Corporation, of which Nova Tran is a sub- converting the monomer to a long-chain sidiary, has been licensed to market the Wei polymer by bombarding the saturated paper T'o processes and chemicals, one can as- with low-intensity gamma radiation under sume that Union Carbide's research and de- 26 ambient conditions in a closed chamber. velopment laboratories will soon try to find At the end of the treatment the polymers a way to combine in a single treatment the deposited on and between the fiber surfaces Wei T'o chemical deacidification process and within the fibers increase the paper and the Parylene process for conformal strength to a point where it is once again coating of paper.27 durable. The library is now seeking finan- It is realistic to assume that further de- cial support to establish a pilot plant to carry velopment of these methods will result in the program into the next stage. Graft-po- at least one of them proving to be suffi- lymerization does not deacidify paper, but ciently scientifically sound, technically paper so treated can be deacidified if de- feasible, and cost-effective to attract sup- sired. However, it would seem that because port from public or private sources for the of the nature of the treatment—impregnat- development of a major production facility ing and coating paper fibers with a ther- to serve the needs of libraries and archives moplastic polymer—deacidification would everywhere. Such a service, when com- seldom be required. That remains to be seen. bined with the general use of alkaline paper The Deutsche Bibliothek in Leipzig is for the production of new records, will mit- experimenting with a method for strength- igate the now monstrous destruction of pa- ening paper after deacidifying it with per records and books by acid hydrolysis. aqueous solutions of calcium hydroxide. Strengthening would be accomplished by Conclusion depositing a new layer of cotton cellulose It would be naive to assume that once fibers on the paper during the treatment. these new technologies are available and That is quite conceivable as a manual op- affordable it will be possible to de-empha- eration. If the manual process significantly size preservation management so that cu- improves paper stability, it would certainly rators and administrators will have more warrant further development into some kind time to devote to other responsibilities. We will have made a giant stride in the right direction but that is all. Because of the wide 25Cunha, "Mass Deacidification for Libraries [1987]." variety of the collections in libraries, and 26C. E. Butler et al., "Graft Polymerization: A in archives especially, mass treatments, re- Means of Strengthening Paper and Increasing the Life Expectancy of Cellulosic Archival Material" in His- toric Textile and Paper Treatments II, ed. S. Haig Zeronian and Howard L. Needles (Washington, DC: 27Cunha, "Mass Deacidification for Libraries: 1989 American Chemical Society, 1989), 34-53. Update." 202 American Archivist / Spring 1990

gardless of their importance, will not solve sulated paper record in a box of mixed all physical care problems. The effect of media? Will the mass treatment be as ef- heat, humidity, and light varies for differ- fective on materials tightly packed in boxes ent materials. The optimum humidity for as on those loosely packed in boxes? For audiovisual materials is different from that most librarians, those whose collections are for paper records. Lighting conditions ideal primarily bound volumes, mass treatments Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/2/192/2747968/aarc_53_2_d68711rn7r2xu6kx.pdf by guest on 23 September 2021 for archives storage are not appropriate for when funds are available will ease their picture collections. While low temperature burden considerably. Recourse to mass storage is good for film, it is not practical treatments will always be important for ar- for library stacks. What would happen, for chivists, but will they always be faced with instance, to the emulsions on photographic the requirement for preselection before prints and negatives mixed with paper rec- treatment? Archivists, in addition to find- ords in a box that is deacidified by a liquid ing money to pay for the new services, will process? What could happen to the hues have to understand the chemistry and the and shades on hand-colored illustrations in engineering features of any system offered manuscript journals? What about manu- for their consideration. They must be scripts written with soluble ink that are knowledgeable about the chemical and mixed in boxes of printed material? What physical characteristics of all of the mate- will the liquid or gaseous deacidification rials in their collections, and be aware of chemicals do to parchment and vellum doc- any possible ill effects on those materials uments, leather-bound diaries, and fabrics? by any system being considered. What could the volatile solvents in a non- There is no Utopia for archivists. aqueous system do to a polyester-encap-