The conservation of lead communion tokens by potentiost atic reduction |
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| Abstract: | AbstractThe paper discusses the methodology adopted for and the results derived from a pilot project to conserve the lead and lead alloy communion tokens in the collections of St Andrews University. For the project a new conservation process, ‘potentiostatic reduction’, was developed, involving reduction of the tokens at ?1·2V vs. SCE (saturated calomel electrode) in 0·5M H2SO4, The aim of the pilot project was to test the effectiveness of the new process in tackling a largescale conservation problem by observing its effects on a wide range of tokens made of various alloys and suffering from varying degrees of corrosion. The results of the pilot project indicated that potentiostatic reduction is as effective as standard electrolytic reduction. Since the new technique greatly reduces the time required for the conservation of individual artifacts, there are substantial savings in conservation costs. |
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