Eric Hansen appointed Chief, Preservation Research and Testing Division, Library of Congress

The Preservation Directorate is pleased to announce that Dr. Eric
Hansen has been selected as the Chief of the Preservation Research
and Testing Division of the Library of Congress, effective September
17, 2007.

Dr. Hansen is a widely known and highly respected preservation
scientist with over 20 years experience in the field, including two
decades at the Getty Conservation Institute.  Dr. Hansen received a
degree in chemical engineering from California State University in
1977, followed by an MA in Chemistry from UC Irvine in 1980 and a
PhD in 2000 from UCLA, where he focused on scientific analytical
techniques applied to preservation problems.  He was hired by the
Getty Conservation Institute in 1985, moving from Assistant
Scientist in 1987 and Associate Scientist in 1989, to retiring as a
Scientist and Project Manager in 2006.  He is currently a Research
Associate at UCLA.

Dr. Hansen's accomplishments in the field of preservation science
earned him the 2006 President's Award from the American Institute
for Conservation (AIC).  He has also just been awarded the 2007
Kress Conservation Publications Fellowship through AIC's Foundation
(FAIC). He has received other grants in the past, most notably an
NSF Grant Award in their Anthropological and Geographic Sciences
Program in 1995.

Dr. Hansen is a former founder and chair of AIC's Research and
Technical Studies Group, as well as of AIC's Conservation Science
Task Force.  He served as Special Editor for Conservation Research
and Technical Studies Papers in the Journal of AIC (JAIC), and has
served as past organizer and moderator for updates on Research and
Technical Studies for the AIC. He also served on the Board of
Directors for the Western Association for American Conservation.  He
is a Fellow of both the International Institute for Conservation and
the American Institute for Conservation.  He is well known for his
national and international collaborations.  Over the years he has
played a significant role in major conservation organizations,
serving in various capacities.  Dr. Hansen has also been recruited
to be a member of many important committees, including the review
committee for the SI Scholarly Studies Program for the Smithsonian,
and the committee overseeing the treatment and installation of the
Star Spangle Banner.

Dr. Hansen has over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles covering a
wide range of preservation topics, most notably research priorities
and field trials in paper conservation, the effect of relative
humidity on physical properties of modern vellum, and the
implications for the optimum display and storage conditions.  His
other publications cover pertinent topics ranging from consolidation
in vapor saturated atmospheres to minimize changes in the appearance
of powdering surfaces, consolidation with moisture-curable polyureas
and polyurethanes, the effects of solvent quality on the properties
of polymers used in conservation, casting of unsupported polymeric
films, and technology used in production of Mayan plasters.  He has
disseminated his research through national and international
publications and presentations, for ICOM, ICCROM, JAIC, Studies in
Conservation, International Journal for Restoration, Journal of the
American Ceramic Society, and Materials Issues in Art and
Archaeology.

Dr. Hansen has extensive experience in:

    *   designing and directing the development of unique and
        leading-edge science technology, addressing preservation
        problems involving parchment, paper, adhesives, textiles,
        polymers, and alkaline compounds, etc.

    *   developing methodologies for characterization of degradation
        products through innovative instrumentation.

    *   analysis using scanning electron microscopy, transmission
        electron microscopy, viscosity, image analysis, etc.

Dianne van der Reyden
Director, Preservation Directorate
Library of Congress
Washington, DC


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 21:22
                Distributed: Monday, September 10, 2007
                       Message Id: cdl-21-22-001
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