AZ ORSZÁGOS SZÉCHÉNYI KÖNYVTÁR ÉVKÖNYVE 1972. Budapest (1975)

II. A könyvtári munka elvi és gyakorlati kérdései - Kastaly Beatrix: A hírlap restaurálás néhány kérdése, különös tekintettel az Országos Széchényi Könyvtár állományára - Some Problems on the Restoration of Newspapers mainly as regards the Stock of the Hungarian National Library

e) neutralization of the acids and to make buffer materials got in to the paper against the acids to be, f) mending, g) strengthening the substance of the paper, h) binding. The fundamental principle of selecting is the value of the contants. On the base of this it is necessary to restore and conserve the most important national newspapers, all of the newspapers from the 18th century and the 1848/49 war of independence and those documents which represent the Hungarian workers' movement and the communist (progressive) press between the two world wars. An "identity card" will be written to all of the units. This will show the important librarial, physical-chemical characteristics and the treatments. The preparation means that if the condition of the volume and the paper requires the volume is taken to pieces. The aesthetically or chemically harmful substances can be cleared away by the disinfection, cleaning and bleaching. These procedures use the different chemicals of the book restoration, but for the newspapers the increased caution is desirable. For the newspapers it has the utmost importance to neutralize the acids in their paper. Its results from the compound cf the rotation papers that a bigger quantity of acid comes into being in them than in ether papers, and the acids mean a more increased danger for the poorer paper. In neutralizing the acids of the paper many kinds of the procedures are adopted all over the world, solid materials which can be solved in water or in organic solvents and gas or vapour alkalis are used. The sheets can be immersed to the solutions, or the solution can be brought on the paper by a spray. We had to examine the degree of acidity in the Newspaper-stcck of our National Library in the papers of different age and compound. And we had also to examine how much this affected the physical condition of the papers (as regards colour and strength). We had to try more kinds of materials — first of all water —soluble ones and two kinds of technologies in order to determine the materials and processes for neutralizing the acids. The most important conclusions of the experiments were as follows: a) The papers having the most acid were the most weakened. b) The bigger quantity of acid has weakened the rag-paper as well in about 130 years. c) Decrease of strength — which is the effect of the acids — is directly proportional to the time, and it has a significant measure in about 20 years. d) Decrease of the paper's whiteness is directly proportional to the quantity of acids and both of them are the function of time. Both of borax-solution and the mixture of two kinds of phosphats have a suitable neutralizing action; the paper remained slightly alcalic or neutral after the accelerated aging, too. The magnesiumbicarbonat-solution gave the paper too much alkaline. It is advisable to give a small quantity of a chelat-complex forming compound to any solution for neutralization. The compounds bind the metal ions in the form of stabil complexes, and so the ions will be desactivated. These ions are catalysts for picking up the acidic substances and forming the acids. Beside the immersion the spray technique proved to be suitable. The mending (sticking of the tears, mending of the holes) happens by hand or aids. Such aids are for example the electric heat-set iron for fixing the plastic folie or the paper making machine. For strengthening the substance of the paper we want to introduce two processes which use plastic materials. One of them is lamination and the other is the so-called Regnal SI process. We shall laminate by a Yugoslavian laminator and polyetilen folie, in every case when this is the only expedient restoring method. The Regnal SI — the patent of a Czechoslovakian chemist, L. SKBIVANEK — applies a plastic material solved in alcohol and in this solution some disinfecting and neutralizing materials can be solved. Regarding the technical and economical disadvantages of taking to pieces and rebinding the volumes, it would be very advantageus for us if we were able to treat the pages of the volumes by this solution. The technical and personal conditions of adopting the new procedures and making further experiments are organized by our library. 143