Conference on Conditions for Conservation of Cultural Properties held
To mark the third year of Research on Conditions for Conservation of Cultural Properties, a research project of the Center for Conservation Science and Restoration Techniques, a conference was held on January 27 (Mon.), 2014 based on results of research thus far. The conference covered the topic of Predicting Pollutant Concentrations and Assessing Air and Climate Remediation Technologies in 3 areas: (1) devising testing techniques to select suitable materials for use in places where cultural properties are stored, (2) examples of air and climate control via prediction of pollutant concentrations based on data from material emissions testing of interior finishing materials, and (3) elevation of concentrations of pollutant gases when raising temperature settings in museums to reduce energy use and various techniques to reduce those concentrations. Many of the attendees were aware of actual issues such as construction of new buildings and renovation of and addition to existing ones, building of new exhibit stands, and selection of display materials. Attendees eagerly asked questions about topics such as methods of ventilation, materials selection, specific responses, methods of measuring pollutant gases, and methods of identifying sources of pollution. Proposals were also offered on topics such as establishing standards for selection of products and whether or not to work on drafting a manual on air purification (93 of the conference attendees were from outside the Institue).