![The Hidden Dangers of Victorian-Era Books The Hidden Dangers of Victorian-Era Books](https://images.medindia.net/health-images/1200_1000/young-reading.jpg)
Multimodal detection of toxic metals in Victorian era book cloths as part of the Beaman Library collection
Go to source). The researchers will present their results at the fall meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS Fall 2024 is a hybrid meeting being held virtually and in person Aug. 18-22; it features about 10,000 presentations on a range of science topics.
‘Did You Know?
Toxic dyes in historical books can still release harmful particles into the air, particularly when books are damaged or degraded. #toxicdyes #victorianbooks’
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“These old books with toxic dyes may be in universities, public libraries, and private collections,” says Abigail Hoermann, an undergraduate studying chemistry at Lipscomb University. Toxic dyes in historical books can still release harmful particles into the air, particularly when books are damaged or degraded. #toxicdyes #victorianbooks’
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Users can be put at risk if pigments from the cloth cover rub onto their hands or become airborne and are inhaled.
“So, we want to find a way to make it easy for everyone to be able to find what their exposure is to these books, and how to safely store them.”
Hoermann, recent graduate Jafer Aljorani, and undergraduate Leila Ais have been conducting the study with Joseph Weinstein-Webb, an assistant chemistry professor at Lipscomb.
The study began after Lipscomb librarians Jan Cohu and Michaela Rutledge approached the university’s chemistry department to test brilliantly colored 19th- and early-20th-century fabric-covered books from the school’s Beaman Library.
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This emerald-green pigment was used in Victorian-era wallpaper, garments, and — as Winterthur found out — in cloth book covers.
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Toxic dyes in Victorian books
For the Lipscomb book project, the team used three spectroscopic techniques:- XRF to qualitatively check whether arsenic or other heavy metals were present in any of the book covers.
- Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) to determine the concentration of those metals.
- X-ray diffraction (XRD) to identify the pigment molecules that contain those metals.
Recently, the researchers used XRF data to show that lead and chromium were present in some of the Lipscomb books. To quantify the amounts, they snipped samples roughly the size of a small paperclip from the cloth covers and then dissolved them in nitric acid.
Their analysis by ICP-OES showed that lead and chromium were both present at high levels in some samples.
Subsequent XRD testing indicated that in some instances these heavy metals were in the form of lead(II) chromate, one of the compounds that contributes to the chrome yellow pigment favored by Vincent van Gogh in his sunflower paintings.
However, there was far more lead than chromium in the book covers, which is somewhat mystifying, since lead(II) chromate contains equal amounts of lead and chromium.
The researchers speculate that the dyes used to color the books contain other lead-based pigments that lack chromium, such as lead(II) oxide or lead(II) sulfide. The team is working to identify those other compounds in the yellow pigments.
Weinstein-Webb and the students also wanted to find out whether the levels of heavy metals in the Lipscomb books could be harmful to librarians who might handle them.
For some of the book covers, the researchers discovered metal concentrations above acceptable limits for chronic exposure, according to standards set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In the dissolved sample from the most contaminated cover, the lead concentration was more than twice the CDC limit, and the chromium concentration was almost six times the limit. Chronic exposure to inhaled lead or chromium could lead to health effects such as cancer, lung damage, or fertility issues.
Handle with Care!
“I find it fascinating to know what previous generations thought was safe, and then we learn, oh, actually, that might not have been a great idea to use these brilliant dyes,” Weinstein-Webb says.The findings led the Lipscomb library to seal colorful 19th-century books that had not yet been tested in plastic zip-close bags for handling and storage. Meanwhile, books confirmed to contain dangerous dyes have also been sealed in bags and removed from public circulation.
Once the researchers have done some more testing, they plan to contribute their results to the Poison Book Project and to help spread awareness on safe handling, conservation, and storage of these books among librarians and collectors.
They also hope others will follow their lead and begin using XRD because it doesn’t require investigators to cut samples from books. “Moving forward,” says Hoermann, “we want libraries to be able to test their collections without destroying them.”
Reference:
- Multimodal detection of toxic metals in Victorian era book cloths as part of the Beaman Library collection - (https://acs.digitellinc.com/p/s/multimodal-detection-of-toxic-metals-in-victorian-era-book-cloths-as-part-of-the-beaman-library-collection-poster-board-195-604681)
Source-Eurekalert