Re: [BKARTS] aluminum alkoxide

[Bob Douglas <redev@xxxxxxxxx>]

Unfortunately, benzene is a carcinogen.

Bob


----------------------  Original Message:  ---------------------
From:    "Jack C. Thompson" <tcl@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To:      BOOK_ARTS-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [BKARTS] aluminum alkoxide
Date:    Sat, 13 Oct 2007 09:04:09 +0000

> Aaron Salik asked:
> 
> >I was wondering if anyone has heard of this chemical, or is familiar with
> >the use of this product.
> 
> I am not familiar with the product, aluminum alkoxide, nor have I read
> _CONSERVATION OF LEATHER AND RELATED MATERIALS_, [by] Marion Kite and Roy
> Thomson, which was mentioned by Bill Minter.
> 
> But I do know a little bit about the general topic of leather for
> bookbinding.
> 
> My copy of the _Report of the Committee on Leather for Bookbinding_
> was published in 1905, for the Society of Arts by George Bell & Sons.
> 
> There was great concern about the quality of leather available for
> bookbinding, and they found a solution.  This was reduced to practice
> in the 1930's by R. Faraday Innes, who developed the P.I.R.A. test
> for leather, using hydrogen peroxide to determine if a leather was
> sound and long-lasting.
> 
> That test, in the end, was neither sufficient nor accurate.
> 
> In the mid-1970's the British Library sent a research proposal around
> the the major national libraries in the world, asking for support for
> a project which might resolve the issue of what was required to produce
> a long-lasting leather for bookbinding.
> 
> The organization which would conduct this research was the British Leather
> Manufacturers' Research Association (BLMRA).
> 
> The leather chemist who would lead this project was Betty M. Haines, and this
> would be her swan song; her last major work before she retired.
> 
> In the event, only one national library agreed to support the research;
> the British Library.
> 
> The project was cut down and left to proceed as best it could under severe
> financial constraints.
> 
> In 1984 the results were published as, _The Conservation of Bookbinding
> Leather_
> 
> The suggestion (calling it a recommendation goes beyond the caveat published
> on the copyright page by the British Library Board:
> 
> "Neither the British Leather Manufacturers' Research Association
> nor the British Library can take responsibility for claims resulting
> from the application of processes detailed in this report.")
> 
> was that the application of aluminum triformate might, just possibly, be
> a solution to a major problem in bookbinding and book conservation.
> 
> Sadly, it has not worked out, and I have felt sorry for Betty Haines
> ever since that monograph was published.
> 
> Skins, vegetable tanned, with the addition of aluminum triformate, has
> not caught on, any more than chrome tanned skins have done.
> 
> They may last a long time, but they don't work well and they don't tool
> well.
> 
> There is another aspect to Aaron's query which should be addressed.
> 
> >It was brought to my attention by a book conservator in Budapest (snip)
> 
> Conservation training in central and eastern Europe is not the same in
> many ways as compared with training in the west (including North America).
> 
> One instance which comes to mind is chloramine-T, which was much used
> in the west, while chloramine-B was used in the east.
> 
> Chloramine-T refers to the toluene form of this chlorine compound; while
> B refers to the benzene form.
> 
> Both work to bleach, for instance, paper.  But benzene is more toxic than
> toluene, although neither is completely safe.
> 
> But don't take my word for anything.  Read a book.  Make up your own mind.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Jack
> 
> Thompson Conservation Lab.
> 7549 N. Fenwick
> Portland, Oregon 97217
> USA
> 
> 971/404-4543
> 
> http://www.teleport.com/~tcl
> 
> "The lyfe so short; the craft so long to lerne."
> Chaucer _Parlement of Foules_ 1386
> 
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             ***********************************************
     Visit "The Book of Origins: A survey of American Fine Binding"
                Online exhibit and catalog order form at
       <http://library.syr.edu/digital/exhibits/b/bookoforigins/>
                                    
             For all your subscription questions, go to the
                      Book_Arts-L FAQ and Archive.
          See <http://www.philobiblon.com> for full information
             ***********************************************