Source for ionic fixatives

Recently I have been looking for North American suppliers for ionic
fixatives, which I've used in the past to fix modern inks on paper
before aqueous treatment.  I've seen several old DistList postings
with the same query but without answers.  I'm very happy to report
that I have at last tracked two of them down, one of each kind.

I found a supplier for the anionic fixative Mesitol NBS (formerly
from Bayer):  Tanatex Chemicals, who kindly sent our lab a free
sample in powder form.  They are online at

    <URL:http://tps.tanatexchemicals.com/contacts/usa-canada/>

>From literature and experience, I have found that Mesitol is often
an excellent choice for violet inks and copying pencil.

I also found a supplier for what was formerly known as Sandofix WE.
It is now called Cartafix WE and is supplied by the new company
Archroma (formerly Clariant, and formerly Sandoz.)  I tracked them
down in Charlotte, NC, and they sent a free sample of Cartafix WE
(and also Cartafix SWE, which is less suitable).  Their contact
information is currently still listed under the old Clariant
website.  My contact Gordon Gray gave me permission to share his
email address.

    Archroma U.S., Inc. Paper Solutions
    4000 Monroe Road
    Charlotte, NC 28205
    USA
    +1 704-331-7192
    Mobile: +1 704-905-3112
    gordon.gray<-a t->archroma< . >com

However, I have yet to find the cationic fixative Rewin EL.  Rewin
EL was made by CHT/Bezema, but I contacted their affiliate in the
USA, Apexical, and was told that they no longer handle that product
and it is not available in the USA.  I heard from representatives in
Germany and the UK that Rewin EL is no longer being made, but that
they do have Rewin CV which they thought would suit my purposes.
They passed my query back to Apexical in the USA, but I haven't
heard back from them.

The Neschen universal fixative combining both cationic and anionic
fixatives (suspension consisting of 1.2% Mesitol NBS and 6% Rewin
EL) is no longer available, but I suspect one might be able to mix
it oneself.

Grace White
Conservator for Special Collections
Duke University Libraries
Preservation Mailbox #90189
Durham, NC 27708
919-660-5906
Fax: 919-684-2855


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 27:31
                Distributed: Thursday, February 6, 2014
                       Message Id: cdl-27-31-002
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