Elemental and Molecular Segregation in Oil Paintings due to Lead Soap Degradation
Abstract
The formation of Pb, Zn, and Cu carboxylates (soaps) has caused visible deterioration in hundreds of oil paintings dating from the 15th century to the present. Through transport phenomena not yet understood, free fatty acids in the oil binding medium migrate through the paint and react with pigments containing heavy metals to form soaps. To investigate the complex correlation among the elemental segregation, types of chemical compounds formed, and possible mechanisms of the reactions, a paint sample cross-section from a 15th century oil painting was examined by synchrotron X-ray techniques. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) microscopy, quantified with elemental correlation density distribution, showed Pb and Sn segregation in the soap-affected areas. X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) around the Pb-L3 absorption edge showed that Pb pigments and Pb soaps can be distinguished while micro-XANES gave further information on the chemical heterogeneity in the paint film. The advantages and limitations of these synchrotron-based techniques are discussed and compared to those of methods routinely used to analyze paint samples. The results presented set the stage for improving the information extracted from samples removed from works of art and for correlating observations in model paint samples to those in the naturally aged samples, to shedmore »
- Authors:
-
[4];
- Stony Brook Univ., NY (United States). Department of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering; Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States). National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II)
- Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ (United States). Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States). National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II)
- Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States). Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Independent Researcher, Rochester, New York, NY (United States)
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (United States). Department of Scientific Research
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1413937
- Report Number(s):
- BNL-114538-2017-JA
Journal ID: ISSN 2045-2322
- Grant/Contract Number:
- SC0012704
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Scientific Reports
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 7; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 2045-2322
- Publisher:
- Nature Publishing Group
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; Chemical physics; Imaging studies
Citation Formats
Chen-Wiegart, Yu-chen Karen, Catalano, Jaclyn, Williams, Garth J., Murphy, Anna, Yao, Yao, Zumbulyadis, Nicholas, Centeno, Silvia A., Dybowski, Cecil, and Thieme, Juergen. Elemental and Molecular Segregation in Oil Paintings due to Lead Soap Degradation. United States: N. p., 2017.
Web. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-11525-1.
Chen-Wiegart, Yu-chen Karen, Catalano, Jaclyn, Williams, Garth J., Murphy, Anna, Yao, Yao, Zumbulyadis, Nicholas, Centeno, Silvia A., Dybowski, Cecil, & Thieme, Juergen. Elemental and Molecular Segregation in Oil Paintings due to Lead Soap Degradation. United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-11525-1
Chen-Wiegart, Yu-chen Karen, Catalano, Jaclyn, Williams, Garth J., Murphy, Anna, Yao, Yao, Zumbulyadis, Nicholas, Centeno, Silvia A., Dybowski, Cecil, and Thieme, Juergen. Thu .
"Elemental and Molecular Segregation in Oil Paintings due to Lead Soap Degradation". United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-11525-1. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1413937.
@article{osti_1413937,
title = {Elemental and Molecular Segregation in Oil Paintings due to Lead Soap Degradation},
author = {Chen-Wiegart, Yu-chen Karen and Catalano, Jaclyn and Williams, Garth J. and Murphy, Anna and Yao, Yao and Zumbulyadis, Nicholas and Centeno, Silvia A. and Dybowski, Cecil and Thieme, Juergen},
abstractNote = {The formation of Pb, Zn, and Cu carboxylates (soaps) has caused visible deterioration in hundreds of oil paintings dating from the 15th century to the present. Through transport phenomena not yet understood, free fatty acids in the oil binding medium migrate through the paint and react with pigments containing heavy metals to form soaps. To investigate the complex correlation among the elemental segregation, types of chemical compounds formed, and possible mechanisms of the reactions, a paint sample cross-section from a 15th century oil painting was examined by synchrotron X-ray techniques. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) microscopy, quantified with elemental correlation density distribution, showed Pb and Sn segregation in the soap-affected areas. X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) around the Pb-L3 absorption edge showed that Pb pigments and Pb soaps can be distinguished while micro-XANES gave further information on the chemical heterogeneity in the paint film. The advantages and limitations of these synchrotron-based techniques are discussed and compared to those of methods routinely used to analyze paint samples. The results presented set the stage for improving the information extracted from samples removed from works of art and for correlating observations in model paint samples to those in the naturally aged samples, to shed light onto the mechanism of soap formation.},
doi = {10.1038/s41598-017-11525-1},
journal = {Scientific Reports},
number = 1,
volume = 7,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Sep 14 00:00:00 EDT 2017},
month = {Thu Sep 14 00:00:00 EDT 2017}
}
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Works referencing / citing this record:
Time-Resolved Photoluminescence Microscopy for the Analysis of Semiconductor-Based Paint Layers
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Revealing the Distribution of Metal Carboxylates in Oil Paint from the Micro‐ to Nanoscale
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