Radiation application for paper preservation: gamma irradiation at eucalyptus pulp sheets

Abstract

Ionizing radiation has been proposed in order to protect information and books that may be lost due to fungi and or insects infestation. In general restaurators are very worried about the maintenance of original properties of items to be treated. The selected technology must consider two points: type of biological contamination and contamination control. Fungi is one of the principal organism which grows well on papers. Once this infestation is installed on the paper it will signify spots, resistance loses and deterioration. The organisms feces introduces enzymes, organic acids and pigments to the contaminated material. Ionizing radiation from gamma sources were applied at laboratory sheets manufactured with commercial cellulose pulp. The subject of this present paper was to investigate the ideal radiation dose that is safe for keeping the paper quality. Laboratory sheets (75 g/m2 ) were prepared in a TAPPI sheet former. Bleached sulphate Eucalyptus pulp, refined in laboratory PFI mill to 31°SR, was the raw material. The formed sheets were irradiated at IPEN’s 60Co Gammacell with 3 kGy up to 25 kGy. No significant changes were detected in paper samples irradiated up to 9 kGy. This is the radiation dose to be suggested. During irradiation the applied dose rate was 0.817 Gy/s.