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Factors affecting the Permanency of Paper: Tests with Labelled Sulphur

Abstract

PAPERS of good quality and high alpha-cellulose content can be kept under suitable storage conditions for several centuries. There are, however, differences of opinion on factors affecting storage, and a recent investigation by Langwell1–5 claims that even good-quality papers can become brittle at the edges. He stated that this attacked portion of the paper in old documents and books has a scorched appearance resembling the product of the reaction between cellulose and strong acid. Analyses of these old papers reveals a high sulphate content indicative of attack by sulphuric acid from the atmosphere.

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References

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HUDSON, F., MILNER, W. Factors affecting the Permanency of Paper: Tests with Labelled Sulphur. Nature 178, 590–591 (1956). https://doi.org/10.1038/178590b0

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