Studies of hair for use in lime plaster: Implications for conservation and new work

Craig J Kennedy; William A Revie; Lore Troalen; Matthew Wade; Tim J Wess

doi:10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2013.01.004

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Studies of hair for use in lime plaster: Implications for conservation and new work

Journal article

Peer reviewed

Studies of hair for use in lime plaster: Implications for conservation and new work

Craig J Kennedy, William A Revie, Lore Troalen, Matthew Wade and Tim J Wess

Polymer Degradation and Stability, Vol.98(4), pp.894-898

2013

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2013.01.004

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Abstract

hair

keratin

lime

plaster

heritage

repair

Historic buildings constructed with lime plasters often require repairs and re-plastering of areas as part of a maintenance and conservation regime. Hair is commercially available for use in lime plaster and mortar, as it is still used today to provide additional strength and crack resistance to fresh plaster. In this study we examine commercially available imported hair from a number of species as well as fresh, untreated horse hair. Small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) demonstrates a loss of keratin structure in most of the imported, treated hair samples, including horse hair compared to untreated indigenous horse hair samples. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) shows that the imported horse hair has high levels of cysteic acid present which is not shown in the fresh, untreated hair. The results obtained suggest that imported hairs are treated with an oxidising agent such as bleach or acid prior to sale, and this weakens the hair making it more susceptible to failure in a building context. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Details

Title: Studies of hair for use in lime plaster: Implications for conservation and new work
Authors: Craig J Kennedy (Author) - Historic Scotland Conservation Directorate, United Kingdom
William A Revie (Author)
Lore Troalen (Author) - National Museums Scotland, United Kingdom
Matthew Wade (Author) - Cardiff University, United Kingdom
Tim J Wess (Author) - Cardiff University, United Kingdom
Publication details: Polymer Degradation and Stability, Vol.98(4), pp.894-898
Publisher: Elsevier Ltd.
Date published: 2013
DOI: 10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2013.01.004
ISSN: 0141-3910; 0141-3910
Organisation Unit: Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic); University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99451399202621
Output Type: Journal article

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Web Of Science research areas: Polymer Science