Scientists have recently applied cellulose nanofibers to mitigate the fire damage in historic papers. This study has been recently published in Nano-Micro Small.
Importance of Conserving Historical Papers
The Latin proverb “verba volant, scripta manent” has rightly indicated that spoken word flies away but written words stay.
A major part of our culture has been documented in the form of scripts, books, musical scores, drawings, and paintings, which need to be conserved.
The future generations must be given a chance to be inspired by past scripture and learn from the historic data. Hence, it is imperative to preserve historical documents properly.
Historical papers are often damaged by fire and these are far more complex to restore, compared to damages caused by aging or usual wear and tear.
In 2004, a catastrophic fire in the historic library of Duchess Anna Amalia in Weimar, Germany, destroyed a large invaluable collection of hand-written musical literature between the 17th and 19th centuries.
This incident emphasized the importance of developing scientific means to determine the extent of damage caused and preserving the documents as much as possible.
Additionally, the newly developed method must be suitable for high-throughput as thousands of sheets are required to be treated.
How to Conserve and Restore Damaged Papers?
Papers are not only damaged due to direct exposure to the flames but also damaged due to indirect heat effects and the impact of water and other extinguishing agents.
Therefore, papers that are not burnt but indirectly damaged, undergo drastic changes in appearance and physiochemical properties due to a series of chemical processes, such as dehydration, oxidation, hydrolysis, gasification, and cross-linking.
Although the legibility of the manuscripts is greatly deteriorated by charring, it could be partially improved by lamination, digitalization, and multispectral imaging.
The papers retrieved from the Anna Amalia library after the fire have been restored by two methods, namely, the leaf casting of the papers and lamination of the damaged and stabilized paper.
However, historians have pointed out that these methods have reduced the readability of the treated papers.
Papers are also restored using an adhesive mixture of different cellulose ethers, such as carboxymethyl, hydroxypropyl, methyl hydroxyethyl. This method has a lesser impact on optical properties.
New Stabilization Method for Severely Fire-Damaged Manuscripts
Scientists have performed an in-depth analysis of fire-damaged papers, bearing different degrees of fire damages, to understand their chemical and surface properties.
They categorized the chemical and structural changes into L-, M-, and H-heat damage.
Research revealed a progressively increased carbon content in the papers by analyzing the presence of C-C bonds and decrease in C-O bonds. This finding implies the formation of hydrophobic carbon-rich layers on the fire-damaged papers.
The charred papers exhibit structural changes at nano-micro scale, with increased porosity and water sorption. In the less charred areas, the cellulose was found to be affected by both chain cleavage and cross-linking.
The authors used these data to develop a new stabilization method for severely fire-damaged manuscripts and prints. This method is based on the coating of suspensions of aqueous cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) on the damaged papers.
They predominantly selected CNFs owing to their chemical compatibility and low visual effect on surfaces. This stabilization method can restore historical manuscripts for a longer period.
In addition to the porosity, highly charred carbonaceous material contains sites of high-surface energy and polar groups. These enable good wetting, penetration, and adhesion of polar stabilizing agents.
In this study, CNF acts as a reinforcing agent and is applied as a 0.5–1 wt.% aqueous suspension.
Absorption and retention of CNFs occur due to the porosity and the remaining polar groups of the charred material, chemical and structural similarities between less damaged areas of the paper, and CNFs the extraordinary network and film-forming properties of CNFs.
The authors revealed that this method improved the mechanical stabilization of paper without affecting visibility and legibility.
At present, scientists are testing this method to rescue and preserve selected specimens from the ducal collection of musical literature from the remains of Anna Amalia Library.
Conclusion
The newly developed stabilization method involves the coating of the damaged papers with a thin layer of CNFs.
The main advantage of this method is that it enables the preservation of papers as well as retrieval of the contained historical information.
The latter function has been possible because CNF develops a flexible, transparent film on the surface and adheres strongly to the damaged matrix which significantly reduces the fragility of the paper.
Hence, this technique provides stability and facilitates digitization and further handling. In the future, the possibility of applying CNFs by spraying must be studied.
News
AI therapy may help with mental health, but innovation should never outpace ethics
Mental health services around the world are stretched thinner than ever. Long wait times, barriers to accessing care and rising rates of depression and anxiety have made it harder for people to get timely help. As a result, governments and health care providers are [...]
Global life expectancy plunges as WHO warns of deepening health crisis Post-COVID
The World Health Organization (WHO) has sounded the alarm on the long-term health repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic in its newly released World Health Statistics Report 2025. The report reveals a staggering decline in global [...]
Researchers map brain networks involved in word retrieval
How are we able to recall a word we want to say? This basic ability, called word retrieval, is often compromised in patients with brain damage. Interestingly, many patients who can name words they [...]
Melting Ice Is Changing the Color of the Ocean – Scientists Are Alarmed
Melting sea ice changes not only how much light enters the ocean, but also its color, disrupting marine photosynthesis and altering Arctic ecosystems in subtle but profound ways. As global warming causes sea ice in the [...]
Your Washing Machine Might Be Helping Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Spread
A new study reveals that biofilms in washing machines may contain potential pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes, posing possible risks for laundering healthcare workers’ uniforms at home. Washing healthcare uniforms at home could be [...]
Scientists Discover Hidden Cause of Alzheimer’s Hiding in Plain Sight
Researchers found the PHGDH gene directly causes Alzheimer’s and discovered a drug-like molecule, NCT-503, that may help treat the disease early by targeting the gene’s hidden function. A recent study has revealed that a gene previously [...]
How Brain Cells Talk: Inside the Complex Language of the Human Mind
Introduction The human brain contains nearly 86 billion neurons, constantly exchanging messages like an immense social media network, but neurons do not work alone – glial cells, neurotransmitters, receptors, and other molecules form a vast [...]
Oxford study reveals how COVID-19 vaccines prevent severe illness
A landmark study by scientists at the University of Oxford, has unveiled crucial insights into the way that COVID-19 vaccines mitigate severe illness in those who have been vaccinated. Despite the global success of [...]
Annual blood test could detect cancer earlier and save lives
A single blood test, designed to pick up chemical signals indicative of the presence of many different types of cancer, could potentially thwart progression to advanced disease while the malignancy is still at an early [...]
How the FDA opens the door to risky chemicals in America’s food supply
Lining the shelves of American supermarkets are food products with chemicals linked to health concerns. To a great extent, the FDA allows food companies to determine for themselves whether their ingredients and additives are [...]
Superbug crisis could get worse, killing nearly 40 million people by 2050
The number of lives lost around the world due to infections that are resistant to the medications intended to treat them could increase nearly 70% by 2050, a new study projects, further showing the [...]
How Can Nanomaterials Be Programmed for Different Applications?
Nanomaterials are no longer just small—they are becoming smart. Across fields like medicine, electronics, energy, and materials science, researchers are now programming nanomaterials to behave in intentional, responsive ways. These advanced materials are designed [...]
Microplastics Are Invading Our Arteries, and It Could Be Increasing Your Risk of Stroke
Higher levels of micronanoplastics were found in carotid artery plaque, especially in people with stroke symptoms, suggesting a potential new risk factor. People with plaque buildup in the arteries of their neck have been [...]
Gene-editing therapy shows early success in fighting advanced gastrointestinal cancers
Researchers at the University of Minnesota have completed a first-in-human clinical trial testing a CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technique to help the immune system fight advanced gastrointestinal (GI) cancers. The results, recently published in The Lancet Oncology, show encouraging [...]
Engineered extracellular vesicles facilitate delivery of advanced medicines
Graphic abstract of the development of VEDIC and VFIC systems for high efficiency intracellular protein delivery in vitro and in vivo. Credit: Nature Communications (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-59377-y. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-59377-y Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a technique [...]
Brain-computer interface allows paralyzed users to customize their sense of touch
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists are one step closer to developing a brain-computer interface, or BCI, that allows people with tetraplegia to restore their lost sense of touch. While exploring a digitally [...]
