Volume 15, Number 2, May 1993, pp.41-42

Technical Exchange

Image Permanence Institute's IPI Storage Guide for Acetate Film

An authoritative tool to use in evaluating and planning storage for cellulose acetate photographic films. Useful for all types of film: color, B+W, positive, negative, still, cinema, and microfilm. Provides basic quantative data in 3 forms: the Wheel, the Graph, and the "Time Out of Storage" Table--each offers a different aspect of how storage conditions affect film base deterioration. Price: $25 (proceeds benefit film preservation research). To order, call 716/475-5199. Image Permanence Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology, Frank E. Gannett Memorial Bldg., P.O. Box 9887, Rochester, NY 14623-0887.

Panel Mount Digital Hygrometer

Edmund Scientific offers an attractive and inexpensive alternative to the hygrometers frequently used in museums. Enclosed in a white polystyrene housing, this compact, flush- mount digital hygrometer can be placed on a shelf or be mounted directly into a display case. It measures 2-5/8" by 1-3/8" by 1/8". The sensor, which is located on the bottom surface, can be detached and rewired if required, though this may change the calibration of the unit. It measures 25%-95% RH at 77° F, with an accuracy of plus or minus 2° F for 40%-80% RH at 77° F, and plus or minus 7% RH below 40% and over 80% RH. Cost: $27.50. Edmund Scientific also makes a matching thermometer, accurate to plus or minus 2° F from -4° to 77° F.

Edmund Scientific Company
101 E. Gloucester Pike
Barrington, NJ 08007-1380
609/573-6250
educational pricing: 609/573-6270

Passive Formaldehyde Sampler

Small, lightweight glass vial formaldehyde sampler features patented Knudsen diffusion disk for precise control of rate of sample collection. At end of sampling period a reagent is introduced into sampler and the resulting color and hue are read using a colorimeter. For more information: SKC, Inc.; RR 1, Box 334; Eighty Four, PA 15330.

Roaches

Biosys has just received a patent and has begun "apartment trials" on a novel approach to roach control utilizing nematodes. In agricultural application, beneficial nematodes are attracted to the heat and carbon dioxide given off by their prey which they then enter through natural openings and kill with a unique and deadly bacteria. The carcass then provides food and a nesting site for a subsequent generation of nematodes who, ideally, continue until the offending insects are extinguished and the nematodes themselves die off. While successfully applied in moist soil conditions, it is not yet known whether nematodes will survive in drier indoor climates. Nematodes, and the bacteria they contain, are considered sufficiently harmless to humans, plants, and animals that products containing them do not now require EPA registration in the US. Biosys, which currently produces 1.5 trillion nematodes a week, intends to market these in a container similar to roach hotel traps. For more information:

BIOSYS
1057 East Meadow Circle
Palo Alto, California 94303

Ceramic Putty

THERMEEZ Ceramic putty is a moist, creamy product supplied in easy to use self-dispensing tubes and caulking cartridges. No mixing is required. It is applied, allowed to air dry, and forms a strong aluminum oxide-based ceramic with a melting point in excess of 3200° F. Resulting compound is resistant to oxidizing and reducing atmospheres, molten non-ferrous metals, steam and most chemicals and solvents. It offers excellent thermal shock resistance and will cool from white hot 2000° F. to room temperature in seconds without cracking. For more information:

Cotronics Corp.
3379 Shore Parkway
Brooklyn, NY 11235

Heavy-Duty Adjustable Dollies

Heavy duty (supporting up to 2200 pounds) adjustable dollies, only 1-1/4 inch high, are available inexpensively (about $17) at home improvement centers. They are sold for moving appliances. One set manufactured for Shepherd Hardware Products (see illus.) is aluminum, with 16 plastic wheels on each of the two units. Shepherd Hardware Products, Three Oaks, Michigan 49128; in Canada: Unionville, Ontario L3R 2E4. (note: newsletter article includes an illustration of this item)

Recent Developments in Non-Chlorine Pulp Bleaching

Most chemical pulping mills employ chlorine, chlorine dioxide, oxygen, and hydrogen peroxide in various sequences in the bleaching process. The paper pulping industry has been attempting to develop and implement environmentally benign processes since the 1970s. Recently, improved efficiencies in the pre-bleaching delignification stage through the use of the enzyme xylanase, which is now widespread among North American mills, and the potential in a new technology utilizing ozone to fully eliminate downstream discharge of chlorine-based compounds has encouraged research into alternative bleaching agents. The March 1993 issue of Pulp and Paper focuses on emerging technologies and trends in the paper industry to eliminate downstream discharge from bleaching operations.

Japanese Paper

Hiromi Paper International offers a wide assortment of Japanese papers, including about 25 kinds "for conservation." Hiromi sells the products of the Fuji Paper Mill Cooperative, as well as paper from many other Japanese mills and handmade paper from around the world. They will provide custom-made paper for special purposes; last year, they commissioned 13-ft x 14-ft sheets of washi paper in Japan for artist Joe Goode's exhibit at LACMA. Their catalogs include 2-inch-square samples and info about each paper: name, sheet size, how many deckle edges, weight, fiber content, cooking method, drying method, and recommended uses. Catalogs cost $10; three are available: Conservation; Decorative & Colored; and Printing, Drawing, & other Art Usage.

Hiromi Paper International, Inc.
4223 Glencoe Avenue, Bldg. C, #107
Marina del Rey, California 90292
310/306-8008