Academic thesis

Jenny Studer: Investigations of the application of acoustic emission technique to Limoges enamels for damage assessment Back
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Overview:
 
Plaque of the Betrayal of Christ by the Pseudo-Monvaerni, circa 1480 (detail)
Abstract: The Wernher collection of very important 15-16th century Limoges enamels is on exhibition at Rangers House. From previous research it is known how vulnerable these enamels are. As they are very sensitive to changes in the environment a suitable monitoring device for assessing instant damage was identified. Acoustic emission is a technique that has been widely used in engineering but has been applied in only in a few cases in conservation. The research project had two different strands: the first was determining the suitability of acoustic emission for detecting micro-cracks in Limoges enamels. Previous to applying the technique on the originals, enamel samples were used in flexure tests and exposed to variations of temperature to assess their response to stress induced deterioration. The temperature and RH distribution in two display cases were measured with data loggers at different points to assess the thermal loading. The second strand consisted of monitoring the showcases with diffusion tubes to assess internal formaldehyde, acetic and formic acids concentrations. High concentrations would cause corrosion of the enamel copper plates. Acoustic emission has proven to be a promising method for determining which parameters play an important role in the deterioration of the enamels in situ. It could be shown that rising temperatures in a showcase do appear to be causing damage to a Limoges enamel.

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Details:
  • academic institution: Royal College of Art/V&A Museum
  • kind of theses:  Masterarbeit
  • main Tutor:  William Lindsay
  • assistant Tutor:  David Thickett
  • date:  2009
  • Language:  Englisch
  • pages:  88
  • pictures:  38
 
Contact:
 
Jenny Studer
Universitätstrasse 73
8006  Zürich
jenny.studer@[Diesen Teil loeschen]network.rca.ac.uk

 
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full-text thesis  academic theses in english
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Creative Commons Lizenzvertrag This work is licensed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 Germany License.
DOI (Digital Object Identifier) 10.5165/hawk-hhg/epublication/23
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