FACILITATING THE APPLICATION OF STARCH PASTE IN THE CONSERVATION OF PAPER ARTWORKS

Abstract

Starch paste is an adhesive that is used in the field of book and paper conservation. This adhesive has a very short shelf life, and for this reason, it must be prepared in small quantities. Also, preparing starch paste for use in protection is a time-consuming process. This research was done with the aim of facilitating the use of starch paste in the conservation of paper works, long-term storage of starch pastes without fungicidal additives and increasing its durability in the long term without changing the quality of the adhesive. The application of fresh starch pastes and activated starch film increased the pH of the samples coated by these adhesives compared to the control samples without adhesive. The samples covered by the activated starch film after moist-heat aging and light aging had the highest pH compared to other samples. The samples coated with fresh starch paste showed the lowest amount of color changes (∆E*) after moist-heat aging and light aging, respectively. Application of fresh starch paste and activated starch film increased the tensile strength of the samples. After aging, the tensile strength of the samples decreased compared to the previous stage, but the tensile strength of the samples covered by these adhesives increased compared to the control samples without adhesives. The adhesion of the samples decreased after aging. The samples coated with fresh starch paste had the highest adhesion after light aging. Also, after moist-heat aging, the samples covered by the activated starch film had the highest amount of adhesion.