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Material Characterisation & Preservation

Material Characterisation & Preservation

 

The Centre specialises in the physical-chemical analysis of artworks and archaeological artefacts and in the assessment of their state of preservation or decay, with the use of non-invasive or minimally invasive techniques. 

On the other hand, the synthesis of innovative, smart nanomaterials (Smart Materials) from environment-friendly vegetal sources seeks to provide new, effective, and eco-sustainable products for the consolidation and restoration of ancient materials.

The material classes currently studied by the team are:

  • soda-lime glass
  • frescoes & wall paintings
  • bronze objects
  • ancient documents (paper/parchment)
  • mosaics

Characterisation & Preservation

 

 

The Center for Cultural Heritage Technology is carrying out the in-depth material characterisation of several classes of artistic and archaeological objects with the aim of offering a complete description, from the surface to the bulk.

The research focuses on the study of complex and heterogeneous ancient materials
from macroscopic scales to the smallest nanometric structures composing the objects in order to deepen the understanding of the relationship between structure, micro-environment and colour, and the material long-term behaviour available within the data collected via existing and emerging techniques. Chemical-physical analyses of the material components are supplemented by hyper-imaging technologies to correlate distributional maps with chemical information of the investigated surface.

This work pushes the analytical methods to their limits because the complexity of material culture is not completely reproducible in laboratory conditions, and requires extra effort in order to define an effective and universal diagnostic protocol.
The studies aim at obtaining a better multi-scale description of compound distribution to provide a clear picture of past trading of raw materials, manufacturing techniques and alteration mechanisms.

 

The Center for Cultural Heritage Technology is investing in conceiving new solutions for protecting several classes of artefacts. The research line aims at developing protective coatings designed to slow down the degradation of archaeological/artistic objects. Each solution is defined based on an accurate study of the composition and deterioration state of cultural items, in order to find the optimal compromise between material protection and aesthetic preservation. The Center is particularly devoted to the application of green and sustainable materials for the protection of our cultural heritage.