Heritage Smells!

Experts in science (chemistry, physics, statistics), heritage science and sensor technology will drive an ambitious but realistic proposal to develop diagnostic olfactory tools for heritage science. The new devices will be non-invasive, non-contact, portable and simple to use providing real-time data; making them well suited to address cultural heritage questions and survey collections, particularly for objects where potential hazards, access issues or sampling restrictions have precluded study to date. Implementation of energy efficient sensors to tackle heritage problems (rather than large equipment) will also help reduce the U.K.'s environmental footprint. Indeed, there is an overall lack of capacity in the heritage sector both in organic material analysis and volatile organic compound (VOC) monitoring; this research addresses such issues.

By merely 'sniffing' the air, questions regarding the environmental and conservation history, composition, condition or stability of objects will be answered. This will empower collections custodians and allow informed decisions about the acquisition, storage, conservation, display and long-term preservation of items, whilst also ensuring the health of those accessing public and private collections.

Three key interconnected challenges have been identified where timely research will give the UK a leading position providing new knowledge, expertise and technical developments, informing practitioners in heritage-user defined problem areas.

1: The past use of hazardous chemicals to disinfect/disinfest objects presents risks to those handling or accessing objects. Within this challenge objects will be 'sniffed' to determine if they have undergone such treatments. The data will allow informed conservation /research decisions regarding handling, display, loan and access. Key deliverables include: improvement of scholarly, public and native community use and engagement with cultural heritage and collection preservation, and development of new knowledge data bases that will be used to train portable sensing systems designed for high-throughput object screening.

2: Since the beginning of last century observation and analyses have established that paper is unstable. A by-product of the deterioration process is the production of VOCs. In this challenge a well characterized set of papers will be 'sniffed' to identify target indicators that imply paper instability. A key deliverable will be the development and application of non-invasive portable sampling tools for paper-based collections that can be used to provide rapid on-site analysis of stability and risk.

3: Heritage institutions are continually acquiring objects that contain synthetic, complex and inherently unstable modern materials. The composition and condition of such objects are extremely difficult to characterise and assess. A unique approach will be taken to tackle this problem: measurement of VOCs emitted by modern materials. The data will be used to inform heritage users of object composition and materials instability; interpretation of 'object smell' has not previously been exploited in this way. A key deliverable is development of a new tool for the identification of modern materials at risk allowing mitigation methods to be implemented to retard chemical and/or biological deterioration.

This proposal therefore seeks to develop VOC sampling tools to address these challenges without the need for complex or costly instrumentation. Indeed very few heritage institutions have access to laboratory equipment and such studies are impossible to implement. The outcome of this research (development of hand held portable low cost sensors) will be of wide benefit to heritage-users and open the research door to thousands of smaller institutions (museums, galleries, libraries, historic houses) and private collectors.

The outputs of this multi/interdisciplinary research project will create a positive and considerable impact on a diverse group of beneficiaries. Data, generated in all research challenges will benefit the heritage sector by providing fundamental knowledge that can be applied to better understand cultural heritage collections (composition, construction and condition) and improve the ability to interpret, represent and preserve such collections. Understanding of environmental impact and deterioration mechanisms will be improved and curators, conservators and applied scientists will use the information to create methods of analysis, develop treatments, modify existing conservation practice (storage, design) and access arrangements. Such objectives will be achieved within 1 - 5 years of published research outputs. Heritage sector partners will ensure sector dissemination and relevance. The developing sensing systems, designed to 'sniff' and interpret emission profiles, will also benefit academics and industrial partners working in sensor technology. Staff, scholars and the public, interacting with cultural heritage objects, will benefit as VOC monitoring will identify environments with the potential to cause ill-health and lead guidance for handling and access based on assessment of risk. The heritage science sector will benefit immediately by increasing capacity in VOC research and providing staff with the required multidisciplinary training for contribution to UK heritage science research.

The sensing systems proposed are small, low cost and portable allowing on-site analysis and interpretation without the need for expensive, complex laboratory equipment. Therefore the research will not only impact upon universities/large institutions but will permit research in smaller, local institutions facing similar problems (see Case for Support) but without resources to tackle them. Thus people not normally engaged in research will better understand their collections by assessing stability and estimating risk; dissemination, training and outreach activities will be required to deliver this medium term (5-10 years) objective.

Longer term, the accumulated emission profiles and analyte specific concentration data, will inform other sectors, such as the food industry (pesticide screening), healthcare (breath diagnostics) and security (detection of compounds with low vapour pressures). The research outputs will also have a direct social and future political impact with regard to the composition/ concentration of compounds in the air we breathe. To reduce the UK's carbon footprint government legislation is driving the construction/building industries to provide more airtight homes. However indoor generated pollutants (similar to those found in heritage science where this practice is mirrored in new storage/display design) then build up to levels potentially deleterious to health. The emission profiles, VOC data and sensor developments in this proposal will directly impact on this future area of concern.

Attracting UK and international visitors to heritage partners is vital to UK cultural life and economy (via tourism). The idea of 'smell' and advanced analytical tools make this research particularly valuable in increasing public engagement with heritage and science thus improving communication and mutual understanding.

Impact will be facilitated by the communications/engagement plans for both specialists and the public (see Impact Plan). Assistance from the Sensor and Instrumentation KTN and presentations at international events (chemistry, physics, spectroscopy, sensors, environmental) will ensure transfer of information across sectors out with heritage science. VOC training workshops will be given at the UoS whilst public interaction will be encouraged at the BM workshop. The investigators firmly believe this research to be t