Preliminary investigation on the use of the Q-switched Nd:YAG laser to clean corrosion products on museum embroidered textiles with metallic yarns

Abstract

The classic methods of cleaning old-fashioned textile museum objects with metallic yarns do not often yield expected results. The use of laser in the conservation of these objects plays an important role as a very efficient and ecologically friendly technique. Conservation and restoration of historical exhibits with metal-textile combinations is becoming ever more complex due to a huge variety of damaging factors. The paper presents the results of the corrosion laser cleaning effects on ethnographic textile with silver coated copper yarns from the holdings of the Ethnographic Museum in Belgrade, using Nd:YAG laser. The testing of the cleaning effects was performed by optical and scanning electron microscopy. The chemical analysis of yarns was done by the EDX and XRD analyses. The parameters for successful and safe cleaning of corrosion products on metallic yarns were determined.