Manganesed Phospholene #7

Lara Kaplan <larakaplan [at] hotmail__com> writes

>I am examining and treating a group of archaeological metals treated
>in the 1960's with the rust remover and corrosion inhibitor
>Manganesed Phospholene #7 (Western Reserve Laboratories, Cleveland
>OH), a proprietary product that saw some use in the past and is
>still manufactured and used today. Some of the artifacts in the
>group have remained stable, however others are corroding. With the
>awareness that there are many factors at work such as surface
>coatings, changing environmental conditions, etc., it would still be
>helpful to know more about the mechanisms of this product to better
>understand its effects. Has anyone researched or used this product,
>or encountered collections on which it was used?

I recall that this treatment was routinely done on metal objects
excavated from Fort Bowie in the Chiricahua National Park in Arizona
in the 1960s. I'm fairly sure that the product was also used by
National Park Service archeologists and contractors on metal
collections from other sites in the southwest including some on-site
treatment of large mining equipment in Death Valley.  In the late
1970's objects treated with this product and another similar product
known as "Process K" were found to be moderately to significantly
deteriorated.  Reports and references to this treatment product and
technique exist in the archives of the NPS Western Archeological and
Conservation Center in Tucson.  You may want to contact the Center's
Conservator, Gretchen Voeks, for information.

Brigid Sullivan
Chief Conservator, Collections Conservation Branch
Northeast Cultural Resources Center
978-970-5160
Fax: 978-970-5121


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 16:77
                  Distributed: Wednesday, June 4, 2003
                       Message Id: cdl-16-77-006
                                  ***