C2800 Chemistry and conservation methods for objects made from inorganic materials I

Faculty of Science
Spring 2025
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 2 credit(s) (plus extra credits for completion). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
Ing. Alena Selucká (lecturer)
Ing. Mgr. Bc. Radka Kopecká, Ph.D. (assistant)
doc. Mgr. Karel Novotný, Ph.D. (alternate examiner)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Karel Novotný, Ph.D.
Department of Chemistry – Chemistry Section – Faculty of Science
Supplier department: Department of Chemistry – Chemistry Section – Faculty of Science
Prerequisites
Intended only for students of Chemistry of conservation-restoration
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is offered to students of any study field.
Course objectives
In the course of the lecture, students will be acquainted with chemistry of metals that were and are used for making of various objects of cultural heritage. The lecture deals with chemistry and methods of conservation or restoration of objects made esprcially from iron, gold, silver, copper, tin, lead, and their alloys.
Learning outcomes
In the course of the lecture, students will gain knowledge about cultural heritage artefacts made of metals in the view of:
1) features and chemistry of the metals and their alloys
2) technology of their manufacturing
3) ways of their damage and degradation
4) methods of their protection and conservation/restoration
Syllabus
  • Briefly about metals, their place in periodic system, physical and chemical properties of metals. Alloys.
  • Metal structure, crystal state, crystal lattice. Phases and components of metallic systems. Phase transformations.
  • Survey procedures and their significance for setting a correct conservation intervention.
  • Metallographic methods of metal structure determination. Fractographic methods. Microanalysis. Indirect methods.
  • Corrosion of metals, possibilities and goals of anticorrosive protection. Chemical and electrochemical corrosion. Formation and influence of macro and microcells. Redox potential. Pourbaix diagrams.
  • Techniques for metal jointing (mechanical, welding, soldering)
  • Protective coatings and decorative techniques based on organic materials (varnishes, paintings, waxes etc.). Metallic coatings, methods of metal coating. Emails. Mechanical and other combined techniques (damask, niello, inlays).
  • Iron and its alloys. History of iron production and processing. Corrosion of iron and characterization of corrosive products. Soil and atmospheric corrosion. Historical methods of conservation. Cleaning, stabilization, surface treatment, new-age materials.
  • Copper and its alloys. History of copper production and processing. Corrosion of copper and characterization of corrosive products. Soil and atmospheric corrosion. Historical methods of conservation. Cleaning, stabilization, surface treatment, new-age materials.
  • Tin, lead, zinc, aluminium and their alloys. History of production and processing. Corrosion and characterization of corrosive products. Historical methods of conservation. Cleaning, stabilization, surface treatment, new-age materials.
  • Silver and its alloys. Corrosion of silver and characterization of corrosive products. History of production and processing. Historical methods of conservation. Cleaning, stabilization, surface treatment, new-age materials. Surface treatment.
  • Gold and its alloys. History of production and processing. Historical methods of conservation. Cleaning, stabilization, surface treatment, new-age materials. Surface treatment.
  • Common possibilities of museum conservation of metals, conservation "in situ". Outdoor conservation of objects. Indoor conservation in a laboratory. Preventive conservation (monitoring of inner and outdoor atmosphere, way of depositing, packing, transport and exhibiting). Reconservation and revisional methods.
Literature
    recommended literature
  • GREENWOOD, N. N. and A. EARNSHAW. Chemistry of the elements (Orig.) : Chemie prvků. Svazek I : Chemie prvků. Svazek II. info
    not specified
  • BENEŠOVÁ, Jaroslava. Konzervování a restaurování kovů : ochrana předmětů kulturního dědictví z kovů a jejich slitin. Vyd. 1. Brno: Technické muzeum v Brně, Metodické centrum konzervace, 2011, 648 s. ISBN 9788086413709. info
  • NOVÁK, Josef. Fyzikální chemie. 1. vyd. Praha: Vysoká škola chemicko-technologická, 2001, 319 s. ISBN 807080436X. info
  • NOVÁK, Josef. Fyzikální chemie. 1. vyd. Praha: Vysoká škola chemicko-technologická, 1999, 229 s. ISBN 80-7080-360-6. info
  • KLOUDA, Pavel. Fyzikální chemie. Ostrava: Pavel Klouda, 1997, 179 s. ISBN 80-902155-2-1. info
  • FISCHER, Oldřich. Fyzikální chemie : (termodynamika, elektrochemie, kinetika, koloidní soustavy). 1. vyd. Praha: Státní pedagogické nakladatelství, 1984, 333 s. info
  • MOORE, Walter J. Fyzikální chemie. 2. vyd. Praha: Nakladatelství technické literatury, 1981, 974 s. info
Teaching methods
lectures
Assessment methods
oral examination.
Language of instruction
Czech
Follow-Up Courses
Further Comments
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught: every week.
Listed among pre-requisites of other courses
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2008 - for the purpose of the accreditation, Spring 2011 - only for the accreditation, Spring 2005, Spring 2006, Spring 2007, Spring 2008, Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2012, spring 2012 - acreditation, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/sci/spring2025/C2800