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The paper presents the results of studies on the deacidification of model papers (Whatman) using nanodispersions of magnesium hydroxide in 2-propanol. Preliminary experiments showed greater effectiveness of nanodispersion deacidification in comparison with the standard magnesium hydroxide reagent which was applied in the form of micrometric particles. Further analyses compared the effectiveness of deacidification by washing, spraying and brushing. Although all of the tested methods caused an increase in the pH of paper water extracts, the assays of magnesium contents using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS) and Scanning Electron Microscopy with an Energy Dispersive X-ray spectrometer (SEM-EDX) showed greatest effectiveness of deacidification by washing. Dispersion spraying requires repetition of the operation at least three times in order to provide an effect that would be comparable with that of washing. Brushing seems to be a less effective method of magnesium hydroxide application to paper. When comparing uniformity of magnesium application on the surface of the paper samples (mapping, SEM-EDX), it was found that the deacidifier was distributed more uniformly when sprayed than in the case of washing.

Reconstituted parchment is, besides Japanese paper and parchment, a feasible and widely used material for filling in losses in parchment. This study investigates changes in haptic and visual qualities of the material caused by modifications with different ingredients like paper and parchment fibres. Additionally, selected procedures processing parchment to parchment powder were examined. As a brief introduction, the paper gives an overview over the existing types of reconstituted parchment that are used traditionally in parchment conservation. In addition it attempts to clarify the terminology for this material. Parchment powder was produced with simple and readily available equipment, by different methods: sanding, grating, grinding, shredding, milling and ice-crushing. The different types of home-made powder were compared to a pre-fabricated parchment powder obtained from a parchment maker. The test series showed that the type of preparation of parchment powder influences the fibre texture which in turn affects the material’s properties visually and haptically. While all methods are clearly more time-consuming than buying ready-to-use material, some preparations, e.g. grating, shredding and ice-crushing, showed superior properties.

Parchment bindings located in the Sternkammern in the Prunksaal (State Hall) of the Austrian National Library were subject of an exemplary conservation treatment with minimal intervention. As part of a treatment plan for selected damaged parchment bindings, a comparative study of the most common infill materials for parchment of parchment bound volumes was carried out: This paper discusses well-known and widely used materials for filling in losses in parchment book covers including Japanese paper, parchment and reconstituted parchment. Their properties were examined and compared with regard to their dimensional changes and long-term stability in a non-climate controlled environment, taking aspects of efficiency and economy into consideration as well. The main findings of this comparative overview show that Japanese paper multilayer infills are superior with respect to their dimensional stability while parchment and reconstituted parchment infills excel with respect to aesthetics. Possible fields of application as well as limitations of the studied materials are discussed so that this study may provide a guideline for the decision process.