Corrosion

I am a student of conservation sciences and started to work on my
diploma. My work subjects are several plaster figures which an iron
reinforcement partially embedded in the plaster matrix.

Due to storage in a humid environment the reinforcement oxidized and
caused cracking and loss of plaster as well as discoloration by iron
oxides. Apart from avoiding further corrosion by climate control, I
am looking for ways to make the reinforcement more resistant to
corrosion (which might be a impossible due to its complete covering
by plaster).

The discoloration is an indicator that more substantial damage could
occur, but once stored in a stabilized environment, a "removal" of
this stains could be desirable would be more an issue of aesthetic
aspects. I am searching for a non-aqueous treatment to avoid the
formation of a salt-solution within the plaster which would force
corrosion.

Marco Buerger - Student
Cologne Institute of Conservation Sciences
Selmenstr. 26
53881 Euskirchen
Germany


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 21:55
                 Distributed: Wednesday, April 16, 2008
                       Message Id: cdl-21-55-011
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