Shipping inflatable objects

Susan L. Maltby <susan.maltby<-at->utoronto<.>ca> on behalf of Amber E.
Morgan,  writes

>    We have a number of inflatable toys from the 70s and 80s that
>    someone wants to borrow from us.  The toys came from Warhol's
>    do not alter items we find in the Time Capsules, opting to leave
>    them exactly as Warhol left them.  In theory, these should be
>    really easy to ship--they aren't fragile and they act as their
>    own padding.  Except we have to ship them internationally on a
>    cargo flight.  I've seen what happens to bags of chips and
>    plastic bottles at altitude so I'm pretty worried about these
>    toys.
>
>    The obvious answer is to deflate them, but our curator does not
>    want to do that. ...

Aren't old unemptied bottles a joy?  For substances such as Silver
Picrate, which appears to be nasty stuff, you'll want to dispose of
it and in the meantime seal it up something to reduce
cross-contamination and/or exposure.  When I've come across
substances that are an explosion/fire hazard I've found that the
local fire department can be a great resource.  Ones I've worked
with in the past have access to a database and can check to see if
what you have is a real risk and how to best dispose of it.

In this case 1% is a pretty low concentration but not being a
chemist either I would treat it as an explosion hazard until told
otherwise since it's all relative to the 'potency' of the substance
and what other additives have been used, it could still be
dangerous.  The contents of the bottle may also degrade into other
substances which could be more dangerous, or less dangerous, but
poses a whole new round of problems.  I haven't worked with Silver
Picrate before but it appears that it's most dangerous if its dried
out over the years so I would take particular care with the bottle
showing white powder.  Kaolin isn't particularly dangerous beyond
inhalation and may be the majority of the white powder that you're
seeing but I wouldn't take any chances.

Even if the fire department doesn't find it to be an explosion/fire
hazard they may still be able to dispose of the contents for you
since it's toxic or at least direct you where to go.  Should you go
this route, being present and giving some basic care and handling
instructions, along with any necessary handling materials, should
severely reduce any potential damages during the disposal process.
You've also mentioned that you have multiple bottles, if they're of
lower value to your collection/mandate this may be an opportunity to
deaccession some of the examples.

Good luck,

William Shepherd
Collections Officer
Swift Current Museum
44 Robert Street West
Swift Current
Saskatchewan S9H 4M9
306-778-4815


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 30:8
                   Distributed: Sunday, July 10, 2016
                        Message Id: cdl-30-8-004
                                  ***