Tri-Test kits

Karen Brown asks about the availability of a Tri-test kit. Though
not featured in our catalogue we have sold a European version for a
number of years. The reason we do not include it as a catalogue item
is that there are difficulties in Europe at any rate with sending
such potentially hazardous entities (I suspect this is why some
companies are not carrying it in the USA too).

In the UK we sell to many private individuals and some of these
people are unfortunately unlikely to have the safety skills
necessary to handle such items. We therefore prefer not to generally
advertise availability.

The Chemikit as it is known here, comprises of a series of 100 ml
bottles containing Phloroglucinol, Iodine, Chlorophenol, Aluminon,
Sugar Water and Sulphuric Acid and user instructions.

It is designed to provide a quick and simplistic method of
testing for the following:

    Groundwood (lignin)
    Starch
    Acidity
    Alum
    Alum Rosin Size

It has to be said though that some of these tests particularly the
phloroglucinol one do not always provide 100% accuracy. I am
certainly aware of tests on papers showing a negative groundwood
(lignin content) content using these kits which subsequently under
more intense chemical laboratory conditions showed levels of lignin
in excess of 3%.

If Karen Brown's associates still wish to obtain the components I
think its fair to say that it will be a lot easier and certainly
less expensive to obtain these chemicals in Bulgaria.

Mark G. Vine
Conservation Resources
England
+44 1865 747755
Fax: +44 1865 747035

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 11:2
                   Distributed: Friday, June 20, 1997
                        Message Id: cdl-11-2-004
                                  ***