Deterioration characteristics analysis and grade estimation of textile relics in moist buried environment

Deterioration characteristics analysis and the estimation of the deterioration grade of textile relics are the premise of accurate restoration and protection. Therefore, in order to identify the deterioration characteristics of textile relics and develop a micro-non-destructive method for estimating the deterioration grade of textile relics, In this study, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), which require very little sample, were was used to systematically investigate the degradation characteristics of textiles under different hydrolysis conditions, and based on this, a method suitable for estimating the degradation grade of precious textile relics was proposed. Results illustrated that regardless of textiles’ type, the more obvious the decline in appearance and mechanical properties, the more obvious the corresponding changes in infrared spectrum and X-ray diffraction, indicating that the changes at the molecular level in the molecular structure and crystallinity correlate well with the changes in the macroscopic properties such as appearance morphology and mechanical properties. Balancing the convenience of operation, the preciousness of textile relics and the quantification of results, the ratio of the strongest diffraction peak in X-ray diffraction detection as an evaluation index to estimate the degree of deterioration of textile relics was most reasonable and had potential for widespread use in predicting the deterioration of textile relics within collections. The study was not only useful to understand the degradation mechanisms that textiles undergo under moist burial environments, but also valuable to support the textile conservation tasks currently being performed in museums to preserve our heritage.