Plastics and modern materials
Museum collections contain many types of plastics and other modern materials, which deteriorate in different ways and at different rates. These resources explain how to identify, care for and store such materials in an effective way to reduce their deterioration and the deterioration of surrounding objects.
Preventive conservation guidelines for collections
Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) Notes
- N15/1 Care of Objects Made from Rubber and Plastic (1997)
- N15/3 Display and Storage of Museum Objects Containing Cellulose Nitrate (1994)
- N17/1 The Beilstein Test: Screening Organic and Polymeric Materials for the Presence of Chlorine, with Examples of Products Tested (1993)
- N17/2 The Diphenylamine Spot Test for Cellulose Nitrate in Museum Objects (1994)
Other CCI resources on this topic
Related CCI resources
- Agents of deterioration
- Basic requirements of preventive conservation
- Handling heritage objects
- Climate Guidelines
External links
- Care and Identification of Objects Made from Plastic (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 8/4, 2010)
- Identification des plastiques et des élastomères : tests miniaturisés (PDF format) (in French only) (Centre de conservation du Québec)
- Care of plastics (Museum of Design in Plastics)