Soot on ceramics

Alayne Alvis <alayne.alvis [at] awm__gov__au>

>The Objects Lab at the Australian War Memorial has been looking at
>various treatments for soot damage, both for use in our lab and in
>terms of general advice we can give to the community.

For soot related damage on artifacts including ceramics Alayne Alvis
might wish to consider the use of tried and tested detergent
products such as Synperonic and Vulpex.

Synperonic in particular has for many years been found to be an
excellent cleansing agent for the removal of soot and ingrained dirt
from encaustic tiles round fireplaces, old window glass, ceramics
and victorian tiled flooring in combination with either water or
solvents.

As an alternative several institutions in Europe have found smoke
sponges effective in removing soot and grime from a variety of
artifacts, used either as a whole or cut into finer slithers for
more controlled cleansing operations. The benefit of the smoke
sponge however is the relative ease with which its control can be
mastered and its harmless nature to the user.

For technical/MSDS information please contact

    Mark Vine
    Conservation Resources (UK) Ltd
    Unit 1 Pony Road
    Horspath Industrial Estate
    Cowley, Oxford OX4 2RD, England
    Fax: +44 1865-747 35


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 16:48
                 Distributed: Friday, February 14, 2003
                       Message Id: cdl-16-48-002
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