ETIC

Use of Electrolytic Techniques In metal

Conservation

Activities between 2003 and 2006

C. Degrigny

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

 Participants
- Dr Christian Degrigny (MT, coordinator)
- Prof Annemie Adriaens (B)
- Dr Joseph Guillaume (B)
- Mr Bart Schotte (B)
- Mrs Virginia Costa (F)
- Dr Hisasi Takenouti (F)
- Ms Ilonne de Groot (NL)
- Mr Ronny Meijers (NL)
- Ms Soledad Diaz Martinez (SP)
- Dr Kilian Anheuser (CH)
- Mr Paul Mardikian (USA)
Leiden, 11-15 January 2010
- Dr Blanca M. Rosales (Br)
- Ms Karen Leyssens (B)
- Ms Nicky Vergouwen (B)
- Mrs Karen Stemann Petersen (DK)
- Mr Jean-Bernard Memet (F)
- Dr Paola Letardi (I)
- Ms Maria Del Pilar Tapia Lopez (M)
- Mr Robert Van Langh (NL)
- Mr Marc Gener (SP)
- Denise Witschard (CH)
Objectives

• Identification of the teams working

in the field
• Dissemination of available
information relevant to the field
• Promotion of good practices

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Fields of interest
• In-situ monitoring of artefacts and understanding of
corrosion processes
Through the measurement of Ecorr, Rp, EIS… Application to the
conservation of outdoor bronze monuments, marine artefacts…
• Storage of artefacts
Through the monitoring of Ecorr with time… Application to the storage
and stabilisation of iron and copper artefacts
• Treatment of artefacts
Through cathodic reduction or anodic oxidation and monitoring with
time of cathodic or anodic potentials or the current of the
circuit…Application to the cleaning, stabilisation and protection of
artefacts
• Transfer of knowledge
Through training sessions and special courses. Design of
methodologies to transfer the knowledge to end-users…
Leiden, 11-15 January 2010
Communication tools

ETIC news (1 to 5)
- Information on the tasks
performed, in progress or
planned in the future
- List of participants
- All documents available
on the Metal homepage
of the ICOM-CC website
and the METALConsn-
info homepage

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Tasks
Task 1: bibliography on all subjects related to the use of
electrochemical techniques in metal conservation
Task 2: field of expertise of the members
Task 3a: list of other experts and field of expertise
Task 3b: contact these professionals to get updated information on their
ongoing and future projects that might be of some interest to the Metal
WG members
Task 4: organise practical training sessions for the Metal WG members
Task 5: organise the placement of conservation students and young
researchers who are willing to undertake an internship in a laboratory
specialised in the field
Task 6: stimulate the organisation of meetings between the participants
of the ETIC sub WG.
Task 7: communicate the results obtained through conferences (METAL
04, ICOM-CC triennial meeting in the Hague), seminars and using the
BROMEC newsletter
Leiden, 11-15 January 2010
Task 1: The bibliography
• Contributors: Annemie Adriaens,
Kilian Anheuser, Gabriela Cicileo,
Virginia Costa, Christian Degrigny,
Gerhard Eggert, Marc Gener, Ilonne de
Groot, Paola Letardi, Karen Leyssens,
Paul Mardikian, Bart Schotte, Karen
Stemann Petersen, Hisasi Takenouti
and Denise Witschard.

• Criteria:
- recent publications (post 1990)
- students reports and projects not
included
- older literature largely omitted

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Topics
• General introduction
• Investigation and treatment of aluminium,
copper, iron, lead & tin, silver alloys
• Other and mixed subjects
• Unpublished reports
• EU reports

Need of a regular up-date

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Tasks 2: Overview of the work
performed in the field by the sub - WG
participants

Information collected
from a questionnaire
sent to participants
- name + details
- name + address of the
institution
- any experience in the use of
electrochemical techniques
- specific interest in
electrochemical techniques
- instruments available

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

An example…

Name Institution Experience in Interest in Instruments Other information

electrochemical electrochemical or devices (training…)
techniques techniques available

Mr Joseph Institut Technique: Electrocleaning of - potentiostat EGG - Collaboration with different Belgian
GUILLAUME Supérieur potentiodynamic ancient silver and gold 362 museums (MRAH, Mariemont… ),
Chemist and Industriel de polarisations artefacts and protection - interface the National Museum of Vietnamese
physicist Bruxelles Metal: Bronzes and conservation of potentiostat History in Hanoi and Région
Lab research (ISIB) Lab work / patrimonial objects Solartron 1186 Wallonne- conservation du
150 rue Royale conservation - Tacussel patrimoine.
1000 Brussels application: protection impedance - Collaboration with different Belgian
Tel 32.2.227.35.54 university: Free University of Brussels
Belgium of Vietnamianese measurement
Fax bronzes: use of the system (VUB), Dept. Metallurgy,
32.2.217.46.07 potentiostat to Electrochemistry and Materials
Email understand the Science (META), Brussels and
guillaume@isib.be formation of the patina University of Liege : IPNAS (institut
in the peculiar physique nucléaire atomique et de
Vietnamese conditions spectroscopie)

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Other tasks
• Updating Tasks 1 & 2
• Starting Task 3: contribution from other
specialists and contacting these specialists to
update the knowledge
• Task 4: Organisation of training schools in
conservation schools and summer schools (La
Chaux-de-Fonds (CH), COST G8 STSMs & EAS
06 (USA))
• Task 6: ESF applications & the EAS 06 CSA
• Task 7: BROMEC, COST G8 (STSMs)

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Task 4: Training School & Summer school
Summer school in La-Chaux-de-Fonds (CH) – July 2004

• Basic theoretical knowledge

through lectures
• Followed by practical sessions
- meaning and measurement of Ecorr
(influence of other parameters)
- use of Pourbaix diagrammes
- use of a power supply and a potentiostat
- set-up of experiments

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Task 4: Training School & Summer school
COST G8 Short Term Scientific missions (STSMs)
• Electrochemical study of the behaviour of lead and
silver alloys aiming to define treatment conditions for
heritage artefacts (V. Costa at the Department of
Analytical Chemistry, Gent (B) – June 2004 & July
2005)

• Characterization of the corrosion products present in

brown spots on historic gold coins and medals (V.
Costa at the Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna (A) –
April 2004)

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

Task 6: Applications to the ESF
•Exploratory Workshops
- a challenging scientific topic, preferably an emerging or innovative
field of research
- a challenging science-driven issue of research infrastructure (RI)
•All scientific domains
•To allow leading European scientists to meet to
explore novel ideas
•Malta not eligible in 2004: Arc’Antique (F) proposed to
coordinate the project .
Use of Electrochemical Techniques for the
conservation of Archaeological and Historic Artefacts
Did not go through. Second run in 2005: Department of
Analytical Chemistry (B). Did not go through either.
Budget: 15000€
Leiden, 11-15 January 2010
Tasks 4 & 6: EAS 06 - CSA
• Coordinated by John Scott (NYCF) and Christian
Degrigny
• November 11-16, 2006
• 3 sessions (Task 6):
- Electrochemical study of corrosion processes and control
(V. Costa, D. Cook, D. Hallam, L.Abrantes & T. Shedolsky)
- In-situ monitoring of corrosion processes on metal artefacts
(I. MacLeod, B.Rosales, P. Letardi & A. Adriaens)
- Electrochemical treatment of metal artefacts
(C. Degrigny, D. Hamilton, P. Mardikian, V. Costa & A. Adriaens
• Two short courses (Task 4)
- Parameters used to monitor, store and treat metal artefacts: an
introduction (C. Degrigny)
- Portable electrochemical techniques: a review (V. Costa)
Leiden, 11-15 January 2010
Task 7: Communication
“Art et Electrochemistry”, Paris (France), May 2004
organised by the Electrochemistry Group of the French
Society of Chemistry

METAL 04, Canberra (AUS), September 2004 Sub-WGs

session
“Modern electrochemical methods in metal
conservation”, Stuttgart (D), April 2005 Metal
Conservation Colloquium, SABK

ETIC ICOM-CC
subWG, Gent 2006
EAS 2006,
Somerset, NY
Leiden, 11-15 January 2010
Task 7: ETIC themes in BROMEC issues

14 abstracts until now

- Study of corrosion processes (Fe in soil)

- Stabilisation of artefacts (pulsed currents on Fe,
composite objects, lead objects, copper base alloys)
- use of Ecorr measurements (storage and
identification of copper alloys
- Protection of artefacts (copper)

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010

 Most recent publications on the field

Electrochemistry for Conservation

Science
Journal of Solid State
Electrochemistry
Éditeur Springer Berlin / Heidelberg
Volume 14, Number 3 / mars 2010

Leiden, 11-15 January 2010