Dyes Used for Colouring Manuscripts and Their Effect on Cellulose Degradation

Emel Akyol; Pınar Çakar Sevim

doi:10.1515/res-2023-0014

Article

Dyes Used for Colouring Manuscripts and Their Effect on Cellulose Degradation

Emel Akyol and Pınar Çakar Sevim

Published/Copyright: November 28, 2023

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From the journal Restaurator. International Journal for the Preservation of Library and Archival Material Volume 44 Issue 4

Abstract

Manuscripts are one of the most important cultural heritage objects that not only contain essential information, but also provide valuable insights into the social, cultural, and economic conditions of the era in which they were written. These materials are subject to degradation over time due to both internal and external factors. While ageing processes of pure cellulose or the effect of iron gall ink on cellulose have been studied extensively, there is little known about deterioration mechanisms in dyed paper. In this study, safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.), buckthorn (Rhamnus petiolaris Boiss), turmeric (Curcuma longa L.), and onion peel (Allium cepa L.) plants as well as cochineal insect (Dactylopius coccus Costa) extracts were used to dye Whatman filter papers. Samples were then subjected to accelerated ageing to determine the long-term effects of the dyes. Colour, pH, viscosity, and glycosidic bond breakage rates were measured before and after ageing. Onion peel dyed paper exhibited the highest rates of degradation, followed by buckthorn, cochineal, safflower, and turmeric-dyed paper. The alum and tannin content may have caused the degradation. The findings of this work may provide conservators with valuable scientific data on the effect of dyes on the degradation kinetics of cellulose.

Zusammenfassung

Handschriften gehören zu den bedeutendsten Objekten des kulturellen Erbes, die nicht nur wichtige Informationen enthalten, sondern auch wertvolle Einblicke in die sozialen, kulturellen und wirtschaftlichen Bedingungen der Zeit, in der sie geschrieben wurden, bieten. Diese Materialien unterliegen im Laufe der Zeit verschiedenen Veränderungen durch interne und äußere Faktoren. Während die Alterungsprozesse von reiner Cellulose oder die Wirkung von Eisengallustinte auf Cellulose umfassend untersucht wurden, ist über die Alterungsmechanismen von gefärbtem Papier wenig bekannt. In dieser Studie wurden pflanzliche Extrakte aus Färbedisteln (Carthamus tinctorius L.), Sanddorn (Rhamnus petiolaris Boiss), Kurkuma (Curcuma longa L.) und Zwiebelschalen (Allium cepa L.) sowie Cochenilleextrakte (Dactylopius coccus Costa) zum Färben von Whatman-Filterpapier verwendet. Die Proben wurden dann einer beschleunigten Alterung unterzogen, um die langfristigen Auswirkungen der Farbstoffe zu ermitteln. Farbe, pH-Wert, Viskosität und Bruchrate der glykosidischen Bindungen wurden vor und nach der Alterung gemessen. Mit Zwiebelschalen gefärbtes Papier wies die höchsten Abbauraten auf, gefolgt von Sanddorn-, Cochenille-, Färbedistel- und Kurkuma-gefärbtem Papier. Der Alaun- und Gerbstoffgehalt könnte die Ursache für den Abbau gewesen sein. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit können Restauratorinnen und Restauratoren wertvolle wissenschaftliche Daten über die Auswirkungen von Farbstoffen auf die Abbaukinetik von Cellulose liefern.

Keywords: degradation kinetics; degree of polymerisation; cellulose; natural dye; manuscript

Schlüsselwörter: Abbaukinetik; Polymerisationsgrad; Cellulose; natürlicher Farbstoff; Manuskript

Corresponding author: Emel Akyol, Chemical Engineering Department, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Türkiye, E-mail: eakyol@yildiz.edu.tr

Acknowledgments

Author1 carried out the experiment. Author2 wrote the manuscript and supervised the project. This work is financially supported by the Research Fund of the Yıldız Technical University with DOP Project: 2014-07-01-DOP03.

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Received: 2023-06-23

Accepted: 2023-10-21

Published Online: 2023-11-28

Published in Print: 2023-12-15

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https://doi.org/10.1515/res-2023-0014

Keywords for this article

degradation kinetics; degree of polymerisation; cellulose; natural dye; manuscript