Acronym:
CleanART
Project Title:
CleanART – Innovative methodology to clean fungal stains from paper documents and artworks
Duration:
02/07/2016 – 01/07/2019
Principal Investigator NOVA.id.FCT/FCT-UNL:
Maria Filomena Macedo Dinis
Abstract:
Books, prints, drawings, watercolours, engravings as well as all other works of art based on paper are very susceptible to fungal biodeterioration processes due to their organic composition and hygroscopicity. Biodeterioration caused by mould is a major problem that affects paper based collections in museum, archives and libraries all over the world. (…)Therefore, there is an urgent need of a solution that is effective in removing the fungal stains without causing any damage to the paper document or artwork. This new method should simultaneously be non-toxic, environmentally friendly and easy to apply. In this project we envisioned a new methodology for cleaning fungal stains in paper that will be a major breakthrough in this area and meet all the above requirements. The project activities will encompass four phases: identification of the paper stains and the respective fungal flora; synthesis of fungal stains removal compounds; testing the effect of the developed compounds on the properties of different papers and media; and testing their effectiveness on real case studies using antique documents and artworks or fac símilies.