Ethylene Oxide for the Mass Deacidification of Paper Relics

Abstract In order to solve the international problem of deacidification protection at scale for the whole book and archives, this paper designs the equipment and technology of bulk deacidification treatment with ethylene oxide gas phase. the procedure is simple and the investment is small. In this process, a mixture of ethylene oxide and argon gas is added with the aid of medium vacuum, and the large-scale deacidification of acidification books and archives can be realized by controlling temperature and humidity. This technology does not need to screen acidic and alkaline paper. After the overall treatment, the paper pH value remains at 7.0 to 9.5, which has no effect on handwriting, no discoloration, and has a certain strengthening effect on the paper. The accelerated aging test shows that the pH value remains stable after deacidification and the durability is enhanced. It is a new deacidification technology of paper cultural relics with high efficiency, safety, good compatibility and scale.