Quantitative imaging to study new conservation materials

The study of materials employed for the conservation/restoration of cultural heritage is necessary in order to assure the long-term protection of cultural heritage. Usually the materials are subjected to accelerated degradation and studied with several analytical techniques that allow to understand their stability over time. In this paper we present a preliminary research aimed at the study of a new conservation treatment for rubber artworks through the use of quantitative imaging. The consolidant polymeric materials was subjected to accelerated photo-oxidative degradation which was monitored with LED imaging coupled to statistics and with Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR).