Kelsey Beeghly, 2023-2024 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow, and Andrew Davis, chemist in the Preservation and Research Testing Division, demonstrate how the Library uses aging experiments with test samples to speed up and investigate the naturally-occurring reactions which cause materials to break down over time. This kind of testing is practical, allowing Library staff to make preservation relevant decisions without waiting hundreds of years. This research also provides fundamental understanding of the science of material degradation. While the general approach to accelerated aging is well understood, scientists researching the processes of degradation continue to refine and debate the details of these methods in order to more accurately use it to predict how materials will behave over long periods of time under normal use. Students can design and conduct their own experiments at home or in the classroom, such as testing the effects of light exposure and protective coverings on paper.
For transcript and more information, visit www.loc.gov/item/webcast-11370