Investigation on a low environmental impact solvent mixture applied to a wooden painted slab

Cleaning is one of the most complex and delicate step in a restoration project, often due to the manufacturing techniques of the artifacts and their advanced state of decay. Eco-friendly solvents can permit to execute the cleaning operations with a reduced health impact for the restorers and for the environment. In this work, the performance of the 1,3- dioxolane/methylal (DIOX-MET) solvent mixture is evaluated over a wooden painted slab that had been covered with a thin layer of a protective varnish, probably during a previous conservation work performed in the Sixties. Removal of this varnish has been considered on behalf of its yellowing degradation process, which caused chromatic change…