Storage environment for objects

Patricia Smith-Hunt <patricia.smith-hunt [at] ucr__edu> writes

>Our Special Collections department has a sizeable, and growing,
>collection of Star Trek/Star Wars realia, and I would appreciate any
>recommended best practices for storing such objects.

Many Star Wars figures are made of plasticized PVC and therefore
develop sticky, dripping  surfaces and later white crystals that
discolour and disfigure their surfaces.  This form of degradation is
particularly common if the figures are stored in their original
packaging and can be attributed to the migration of plasticizer,
usually phthalates, to surfaces and their subsequent hydrolysis to
crystalline phthalic acid or anhydride.  The degradation process may
be slowed by keeping the figures at temperatures below ambient.  If
storage is long term and the figures are rarely required for display
or study, they may be stored in a domestic fridge or freezer after
enclosing them in a closed polythene bag (Ziploc) to reduce the
possibility of contact with condensation when they return to ambient
temperature.   If degradation has taken place, the only solution is
to remove the figures from their original packaging, remove any
white crystals by rinsing in  distilled water and remove stickiness
with detergent solution. It will return as more plasticizer migrates
to surfaces with time, but low temperature storage will dramatically
reduce the rate.

Yvonne Shashoua
Senior Researcher
Department of Conservation
National Museum of Denmark


                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 23:29
                Distributed: Thursday, February 11, 2010
                       Message Id: cdl-23-29-002
                                  ***