Technical Heritage Research Articles

Epistemology and History of Science in the reflections of Evandro Agazzi

The merit of Evandro Agazzi’s epistemological reflection can be found in the following proposal: the history of science should be understood and studied as a meeting point between philosophical reflection and scientific research. Science and philosophy are thus closely united. In the words of Kant, science without philosophy is blind and philosophy without science is empty. Not only that: for Agazzi, the philosophy of science helps society as a whole to better understand the cultural (and human) value of science. Conversely, the history of science helps us to understand the perennially progressive nature of our knowledge. Why is this so? Because we can never disregard the intrinsic historicity of scientific knowledge.The historical approach to science also helps us to understand how scientific development always takes place within different choices. Conversely, epistemological reflection also helps historical research to better understand the development of our cognitive and technical heritage. On this basis, Agazzi worked - in collaboration with Ludovico Geymonat - to spread the institutional presence of the philosophy of science and the history of science (as well as mathematical logic) in universities, especially in Italy. Today, all of us are like dwarfs on the shoulders of giants, since we can better understand the connections between science and philosophy precisely because we can avail ourselves of Evandro Agazzi’s historical contributions.

Water Management Digital Knowledge Repository as an Online Tool to Preserve, Maintain and Develop Technical Heritage of Water Sciences

Water Management Digital Knowledge Repository presented in this article is unique in the sense that it helps to preserve the heritage of water profession and facilitates access to the latest information for a wider public. This is particularly important in a country where water-related disasters have not only threatened the people in the past but unfortunately, they need to be prepared for such events in the future, too. Therefore, the digital knowledge repository, based on six pillars (eLearning, Photos, Videos, Journals, Textbooks, Glossary), plays a valuable and important role in Hungary.

Assessment of Microstructural Features of a Silchrome 1 Exhaust Valve of a Harley-Davidson WLA World War II Motorcycle.

The paper aims at documenting the material employed in 1942 for the fabrication of an exhaust valve for a Harley-Davidson WLA/WLC motorcycle and assesses the material features with modern steel standard specifications and treatment. Facing properties of the original historical parts of technical heritage objects according to modern standards is a rare discipline, as these objects are nowadays in collections of museums or private collectors and experimental instrumental analyses are strictly forbidden. In this case, a preserved accessible unused surplus replacement kit was studied. The microstructure was assessed by light optical and scanning electron microscopy, electron probe micro-analysis and by heat treatment-hardness correlation. It was found that the valve was made of Silchrome 1 steel in coherence with the X45CrSi9-3 steel modern material standard, but with a slightly higher content of phosphorus and sulfur. Microscopic observations and hardness profile testing suggested a tempered martensitic structure (sorbite) with very fine grains uniformly distributed in the valve and an even heat treatment. Heat treatment-hardness experimentation demonstrated that the original heat treatment cannot be achieved by the modern standard procedure. The tempering temperature was surprisingly deduced to be lower than the recommended one according to the modern standard, which contrasts with the service temperature indicated in the contemporary motorcycle mechanics handbook.

Блинк-компаратор: герменевтика предмета в техническом музее

The article is devoted to the problem of interpretation of a museum object, its kind, when an unambiguous demonstration of the purpose of a thing in the environment of its primary existence is important. In the case when an exhibit does not reveal its essence by itself, it is necessary to decipher its purpose, application practice, history of occurrence and other similar aspects of its information potential. In practice, the depressurization of meanings, the deep deployment of an information flow densely saturated with facts and events, is a non-trivial task. This is all the truer regarding monuments of scientific and technical heritage in technical and natural science museums, since very often objects related to scientific instruments or various kinds of machines are not amenable to information disclosure without prior preparation on the part of the visitor. As an example, to demonstrate the hermeneutical isolation of an object and decode its functional and utilitarian essence, the blink-comparator, an astronomical device of the relatively recent historical past, which has lost its relevance today, was chosen. The author of the article proves that any explanations of the purpose of this thing as a museum object in the context of working with a visitor cannot be reduced to a linear chronological sequence of presentation of the material, but inevitably there will be a need for asynchronous transitions from period to period with the presence of parallel places and a branching structure of the story with multiple storylines.

Developing a Novel Prefabricated Enclosure Wall Panel based on the Traditional Technical Heritage in Egypt

Developing a Novel Prefabricated Enclosure Wall Panel based on the Traditional Technical Heritage in Egypt

Technical heritage of Madrid’s bridges, Spain

Madrid’s bridges trace a path through the evolution of construction technologies over the past five centuries. Since Madrid became the capital of Spain in the sixteenth century, bridges have taken centre stage in the growth of the city. Firstly, they crossed its rivers; later, they crossed other obstacles and connecting routes. Over time, they display a succession of materials, types and technological solutions. They include unique works and key historical figures in the history of construction. The authors propose a chronological analysis of materials and techniques: masonry bridges, iron bridges, reinforced concrete, prestressed concrete, composite bridges and modern designs. Studying them from a technological point of view offers a previously unseen view of their major significance in heritage. The individual value of each one is added to the overall historical and cultural value. This paper helps highlight the individual and collective relevance of Madrid’s bridges, and it is also a chance to take a look back over the technical development of bridge engineering up to the present day.

Active thermography to look beneath the surface of a historic German aircraft

Thermography is a well-established non-destructive testing technique in materials research and defect detection. In addition, it is used on cultural heritage in the form of buildings and paintings. This contribution explores the utilisation of active thermography on an object of technical heritage – a historic aircraft of the Second World War, the Messerschmitt Me 163 b, as a part of an exhibition in the Deutsches Museum in Munich. Unfortunately, the appearances of many exhibits in museums have been altered before or during their time with the museum and are not in a historically accurate condition. Furthermore, the active service history is often not documented in detail or might have been lost. Both features are equally important in the presentation of information on a displayed item and destructive techniques cannot be employed on historic objects. Hence a non-destructive, non-contact way of examination was chosen in the form of thermography. With the help of phase analysis, flash thermography is also an invaluable tool for the evaluation of layered systems and can differentiate between paint layers. During the research presented herein, traces of abrasion and chemical stripping of older paint layers were visible. This complicates the compilation of sufficient information for a historically accurate restauration with any technique. Nonetheless, flash or pulsed thermography proves to be capable of finding not only identifying markings, defects, and different paint layers, but also the inner workings and substructure of the object under investigation.

A BRIEF FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS OF HBIM/GIS INTEGRATION IN THE INFRASTRUCTURE HERITAGE CONSERVATION: THE CASE OF THE CHINESE EASTERN RAILWAY(CER) MAIN LINE

Abstract. Large-scale infrastructure is typically regarded as a symbol of technological and engineering development during its construction time. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the infrastructure heritage along the Chinese Eastern Railway (CER) Main Line. However, the conservation of this crucial component of the CER, which is an important cross-culture and linear heritage in China, has received little attention, with conservation methods remaining relatively traditional. Due to threats posed by human and natural factors, the remaining infrastructure heritage is at risk of being lost. Additionally, the vanished part, including the infrastructure and technical heritage applied during construction, cannot be revealed. To address this issue, new technologies and management methods, such as BIM/HBIM and GIS, should be introduced to reconstruct the vanished part and record the status quo of what still remains. We propose building a database that integrates HBIM and GIS to facilitate the preservation of this historic infrastructure and analyse the feasibility of this method. Our research aims to establish an accurate, efficient, and collaborative method for integrating historical data and preserving the infrastructure heritage along the Main Line of the CER.

Protective Coatings for Metals in Scientific—Technical Heritage: The Collection of the Spanish National Museum of Science and Technology (MUNCYT)

This paper presents results on the protective properties of different coatings over metals representative of those found in scientific–technical heritage collections. An examination of several objects in the collection of the Spanish National Museum of Science and Technology have allowed the identification of brass and steel as the most representative metals, and the existence of coatings (mainly shellac and acrylic resins) applied for aesthetic and/or conservation purposes. Based on these findings, brass and steel coupons coated with Paraloid B-44, B-48, B-67, B-72, Incralac, Cosmolloid H80, B-72 + H80 double layer and shellac have been studied to carry out a first screening in order to select the most promising candidates and determine the most appropriate methodology and key factors for the study. Coatings have been aged up to 336 h using cycles of UV light and water condensation. The change in the aspect of the coupons has been assessed via visual examination, optical microscopy and colorimetric measurements, with B-44 and Incralac showing the least change. EIS has been used for a quantitative evaluation of the protective properties and FTIR to measure chemical changes experienced by some coatings, such as B-48 and B-67. These evaluations allowed us to follow, understand and compare the behaviour of the different coatings and substrates after artificial ageing.

A Visit to the Museum of the History of the Development of Education in the Tula region as Part of the IHST RAS Young Scientists’ Scientific School «Industrial Cities: Scientific and Technical Heritage»

A Visit to the Museum of the History of the Development of Education in the Tula region as Part of the IHST RAS Young Scientists’ Scientific School «Industrial Cities: Scientific and Technical Heritage»

Актуализация истории мореходства в имиджевой политике государства (Эстонский морской музей в Таллине)

The article is published based on the materials of the report of the same name, delivered at the second scientific and practical conference «Popularization of technical heritage in the museum» (Saint-Petersburg, GET, October 11, 2022). The author examines the transport thesaurus of maritime museums through the prism of state image policy. The Maritime Museum forms value categories related to the dignity of the state, its history, and the national narrative. The article examines the features of the exposition of the Estonian Maritime Museum in Tallinn, analyzes the place of finds in the phenomenological and semiotic field of the museum space. Special attention is paid to the Hanseatic kogg, discovered and exhibited in the museum in 2015. The medieval ship is presented as a trigger of attractive activity in the museum, as well as a figurative and symbolic element in the general narrative of the Baltic region.

Visual archives towards the recovery and reactivation of artistic and pedagogical heritage at the School of Fine Arts in Porto

This article reviews the development of a visual archive within the scope of a funded project Wisdom Transfer that was realised at the Faculty of Fine Arts (FBAUP), University of Porto, in Portugal from 2018 to 2021. The project’s directional objective was to research on the pedagogic environment at the faculty during key years preceding the Revolution of 25 April 1974, towards recovering and reactivating the connected historical, empirical, and technical heritage – which had had a pivotal influence on the maturation of the faculty’s now distinctive cultural identity.
 The visual archive was based on photographic and audio-visual materials gathered through a series of interview-based sessions with noted artists who were associated with the faculty during the indicated period as either teachers or students.
 The photographic materials included both original imageries belonging to the period, and contextual pictures taken during the project period, and became generative resources for both the reconstruction of pedagogic histories, and their reinterpretation in contemporary contexts of creative education. The article, thereby, concatenates the methodological elements that were instrumental in the articulation of the visual archive, alongside a number of key project outputs towards highlighting the efficacy of photographs and photography in conducting social research.

Beyond the Museum Walls: The Pandemic and the Prototypes Exhibit at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers.

This article looks at the consequences of the health crisis for France's field of culture and its response since the first French lockdown from March to May 2020 and the second one between October 2020 and May 2021. One exhibition that had to close the day after it had just opened was Prototypes: From Experimentation to Innovation. The exhibition's organizers (the museum staff and a network to safeguard national scientific and technical heritage) quickly turned to technological tools to find alternative ways of reaching the public during the crisis: online and traveling exhibitions. Moving the exhibition online was successful; however, a review of the exhibition shows that to truly reach their audience, museum exhibits need to be seen in person.

Historical aircraft paints: Analytical pyrolysis for the identification of paint binders used on two Messerschmitt Bf 109 planes

Historical airplanes have entered museum collections to show the development of aviation and are part of our technical heritage. The period between the 1920′s and 1945 is characterized by giant progressions in the chemical industry. During these years a wide increase in the production of new materials and solvents was observed, that replaced the natural materials used in the aircraft industries due to their improved properties. In Germany this industrial development was counteracted by preparations for the war that aimed at a self-sufficiency based on German products and thus an independency of the international market. This work presents the analyses of the organic binders of painted layers of a Messerschmitt Bf 109 model E-3 used until the 1955 and repainted several times until the 1974 and a cabin roof from a Bf 109 model B built in the 1937–1938 lost during the flight and never repainted. The microscopic analyses performed on the samples from the two planes allowed us to characterize the presence of a high and variable number of paint layers. These layers adhere extremely well on each other and are very brittle. For this reason, it was almost impossible to separate them for analytical purposes by mechanical means. In this study we applied for the first time analytical pyrolysis coupled with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry for the characterization of the painted layers from the two planes. The combination of the versatility of analytical pyrolysis together with the high selectivity of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry allowed us to fully characterize and discriminate the synthetic and natural materials used in both airplanes, and to characterize the original paint binders as being composed of alkyd resin, phenol formaldehyde resin and nitrocellulose.

Atlas information system of natural and cultural heritage of Ukraine

The purpose of this study is to highlight the conceptual and methodological approaches as well as practical experience in creating of an Atlas Information System of natural and cultural heritage of Ukraine (AIS PiKS) and to outline the directions of its long-term development. AIS PiKS means a problemoriented information system that provides an opportunity to store, systematize and analyze a large amount of accounting and statistical information that will present a modern and clear information picture of the state and trends of the development trends of objects and territories of the country's natural and cultural heritage and its regions, and present it with traditional and modern means of visualization; to assist the bodies of state administration in the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of natural and cultural heritage, such as accounting, protection, conservation and use of its objects and territories etc. At the first stage of its development, AIS PiKS was reflected in the form of appropriate blocks of the electronic Atlas "Population of Ukraine and its natural and cultural heritage" (hereinafter – the Atlas). The development of the atlas was completed in 2020 by the Institute of Geography of NASU. Among the many scientific and applied tasks that were solved, the focus is on research of their thematic component, among them – the theoretical development of the component structure and content of AIS PiKS, development of conceptual and terminological apparatus, analysis, and visualization of various spatial and descriptive information. The formation of information database AIS PiKS was carried out in the presence of a huge number of potential mapping objects, inefficiently functioning state accounting system of PiKS objects and territories and the need to supplement existing lists with data on spatial localization of mapping objects, visualization of topographic location and necessary attributive (descriptive) information. The need to present a wide range of data from areas related to geography (primarily culture) required the search for new conceptual approaches, methodological solutions, and relevant information sources. As a result, the first in Ukraine specialized thematic maps of ethnocultural, religious and scientific and technical heritage were created, which is a scientific novelty of the Atlas. For the first time in Ukraine, сultural-landscape zoning of Ukraine has been developed at the macro level, thus starting to fill a gap of the absence of domestic developments of this kind. The map "Cultural-landscape zoning of Ukraine" became one of the key topics of the electronic atlas "Population of Ukraine and its natural and cultural heritage". The study identified proposals on the main directions of development and practical application of AIS PiKS. Besides actualization of data, they involves the development of the main ideas and areas of research planned in the Atlas, especially on complex electronic atlases, the deepening of the regional aspect of case studies of cultural and natural heritage through inclusion in the systems of national and regional strategy, spatial development planning, research on integrated study of territory, mapping and development of CLZ of cultural and natural heritage of regions and administrative districts, etc.

Evolution of Standardized Specifications on Materials, Manufacturing and In-Service Inspection of Nuclear Reactor Vessels

The cataloguing and revision of reactor pressure vessels (RPV) manufacturing and in-service inspection codes and their standardized material specifications—as a technical heritage—are essential for understanding the historical evolution of criteria and for enabling the comparison of the various national regulations, integrating the most relevant results from the scientific research. The analysis of the development of documents including standardized requirements and the comparison of regulations is crucial to be able to implement learned lessons and comprehend the progress of increasingly stringent safety criteria, contributing to sustainable nuclear power generation in the future. A novel methodology is presented in this work where a thorough review of the regulations and technical codes for the manufacture and in-service inspection of RPVs, considering the implementation of scientific advances, is performed. In addition, an analysis focused on the differences between irradiation embrittlement prediction models and acceptance criteria for detected defects (both during manufacturing and in-service inspection) described by the different technical codes as required by different national regulations such as American, German, French or Russian is performed. The most stringent materials requirements for RPV manufacturing are provided by the American and German codes. The French code is the most stringent with respect to the reference defect size using as a criterion in the in-service inspection.

Analysis of the Technological Evolution of Materials Requirements Included in Reactor Pressure Vessel Manufacturing Codes

The growth of green energy technologies within the frame of the 7th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) along with the concern about climatic changes make nuclear energy an attractive choice for many countries to ensure energy security and sustainable development as well as to actively address environmental issues. Unlike nuclear equipment (immovable goods), which are often well-catalogued and analyzed, the design and manufacturing codes and their standardized materials specifications can be considered movable and intangible goods that have not been thoroughly studied based on a detailed evaluation of the scientific and technical literature on the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) materials behavior. The aim of this work is the analysis of historical advances in materials properties research and associated standardized design codes requirements. The analysis, based on the consolidated U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.99 Rev.2 model, enables determination of the best materials options, corresponding to some of the most widely used material specifications such as WWER 15Kh2MFAA (used from the 1970s and 1980s; already in operation), ASME SA-533 Grade B Cl.1 (used in pressurized water reactor-PWR 2nd–4th; already in operation), DIN 20MnMoNi55 and DIN 22NiMoCr37 (used in PWR 2nd–4th) as well as ASTM A-336 Grade F22V (current designs). Consequently, in view of the results obtained, it can be concluded that the best options correspond to recently developed or well-established specifications used in the design of pressurized water reactors. These assessments endorse the fact that nuclear technology is continually improving, with safety being its fundamental pillar. In the future, further research related to the technical heritage from the evolution of materials requirements for other clean and sustainable power generation technologies will be performed.

Metallographic Testing of 19th Century Steel in an Operating Water Tower.

The world’s first steel structures were built towards the end of the 19th century. Some of them are still in use today, whereas others are maintained as precious technical heritage. In both cases, there may be a need to assess their technical condition and carry out repairs and reinforcements, which requires an understanding of the properties of the steel used. The few studies that have been undertaken of such steel structures indicate that the properties depend on the history of use. This paper presents the results of metallographic tests of a steel tank in a water tower built in 1884 in Lower Silesia. The chemical composition was consistent with that of the puddled steel used in the 19th century. The carbon content showed significant segregation and ranged from 0.011% to 0.072% mass. As a consequence, a typical microstructure for low-carbon steels (ferritic) was observed, changing locally to ferritic-pearlitic. The tested steel contained a very high content of phosphorus and silicon. The microstructure with numerous slags favoured the formation of surface delamination caused by the corrosion processes. The degree of corrosion of the steel of the tank was also assessed, as well as the type of corrosion inside the tank. Corrosion was favoured by the oxygen concentration cell. The results of the research will be used to assess the potential for continuing tank use and the reinforcements that have been planned. The results presented will add to the somewhat limited research results available for steel dating back to the 19th century, which is still present in many building structures. Such a database is especially needed by those designing technical measures aimed at maintaining these historical structures in good technical condition.

A transparent dialogue between iconography and chemical characterisation: a set of foreign stained glasses in Portugal

This work presents the first results of the iconographic study and analytical characterisation of a set of four stained-glass panels that are part of the collection of National Palace of Pena (Sintra, Portugal). These panels were collected by the King Ferdinand II in the mid-nineteenth century, for his main residence the Palace of Necessidades (Lisbon, Portugal), and only first presented to the general public in 2011. This study contributes with the knowledge of Technical Art History and Heritage Science to a better and deeper understanding of their history, materials and techniques used in the production, where an art-historical and a scientific approach are applied to attribute their origins. Based on the analysis of the formal and stylistic characteristic of the panels, it is proposed that the drawings used for the production of three of these panels may be based on the design and painting being carried out in the same workshop, and that the four panels have the same provenance (Germany). The composition of the glass and grisaille was determined and colourising elements were identified. Through this approach, conclusive correlation between the analysed glasses was possible: all are calcium rich or calcium–potassium rich types, and the results also suggest that the same source of silica was used for their production. A typical mixture of glass and lead oxide was found in the grisaille applied on the painted panels. However, less usual was the use of a copper oxide pigment for the black grisaille. All these findings support the proposals made regarding provenance and production period (fifteenth century).

ПРИРОДНА ТА КУЛЬТУРНА СПАДЩИНА УКРАЇНИ: ДОСВІД ТЕМАТИЧНОГО ВИВЧЕННЯ ТА АТЛАСНОГО ЕЛЕКТРОННОГО КАРТОГРАФУВАННЯ

The article considers the main methodological approaches to the thematic study of natural and cultural heritage (NCH) and the results of their implementation in the electronic atlas "Population of Ukraine and its natural and cultural heritage". The structure and content of the two thematic blocks of the Atlas in the composition of 37 maps is built in such a way as to cover all the variety of definitions that characterize the spheres of nature and culture heritage in Ukraine. Based on the developed methodological approaches, for the first time in Ukraine, cultural and landscape zoning of the country's territory at the macro level was performed, in the taxonomic system of which 14 cultural and landscape regions and 52 cultural and landscape macroregions were identified. For the purposes of mapping natural heritage, a no official definition of this term has been developed, the typology of objects has been determined, a database of existing and promising objects and territories with their coordinate reference has been formed, and several relevant maps have been created. The problem of a huge number of potential objects of cultural heritage mapping (over 100 thousand) in the process of forming the data base was solved by not considering necropolis historical monuments, most commemorative plaques, and some minor buildings in the complexes of monuments and by reflection, mainly monuments of national (partially, local) significance. The Atlas has significantly expanded the composition of functional categories of cultural heritage by integrating a wide range of cultural and natural, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable heritage by separate research areas. The result of this work are maps of ethnocultural, religious, scientific, and technical heritage. These are the first in Ukraine specialized maps of similar topics and scope, which constitute the scientific novelty of the Atlas, allow to significantly expand the subject field of research NCH, and can contribute to the introduction into scientific practice of new categories of heritage. For the first time in Ukraine, based on collected, systematized, thorough and comprehensive information, a holistic picture of the country's NCH is shown.