Preservation of newspapers

Shirley Shepard <shirley.shepherd<-a t->dwnmus< . >magnt< . >nt< . >gov< . >au> asked how
to best preserve newspapers which are to be displayed and which have
already begun to deteriorate.

Newsprint by its nature begins with high lignin content and residual
acids.  The lignin tends to darken the paper with time and
contributes to its initial weakness.  The acids cause the cellulose
fibers to break, and this leads to embrittlement.

One effective way to slow the embrittlement is to treat the paper to
neutralize the acids.  Testing by the Institute of Paper Science and
Technology under contract by the Library of Congress has shown that
a nonaqueous deacidification treatment will extend the life of the
materials by at least a factor of 3. Because some encapsulating or
framing techniques tend to trap acids and accelerate the aging
process, neutralization can give even greater benefits if applied
before the paper has become brittle.

Small quantities of newsprint can be treated by applying a spray
material.  For larger quantities, sending the materials to a mass
deacidification service would be most cost effective.  Either
technique neutralizes the acids and leaves an alkaline reserve which
will protect against future attack.

More information is available from the Library of Congress, on the
Conservation OnLine web site under Mass Deacidification
<URL:http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/bytopic/massdeac/>, at our
web site <URL:http://www.bookkeeper-pti.com> or by contacting us
directly.

Jim Burd
President
Preservation Technologies, Inc.
412-779-2111
Fax: 412-779-9808

                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 10:75
               Distributed: Wednesday, February 26, 1997
                       Message Id: cdl-10-75-014
                                  ***