The all powerful oxygen

After much thought, I decided to write my last blog about a topic I thoroughly enjoyed researching for my second paper: atomic oxygen. A single atom of oxygen, atomic oxygen does not exist in Earth's atmosphere. In space, however, it is formed when the sun's UV rays split diatomic oxygen into a pair of free radical oxygen. This atom is destructive on its own because it has two unpaired electrons that are desperate to pair with other electrons.
Researchers at NASA accidentally discovered that atomic oxygen could be used to remove layers of organic material from a surface. This discovery created awareness that atomic oxygen could be used for removing organic contaminants or aged varnishes from the surface of paintings.
Remember how in the linseed oil article from class there was a reference made about how some lady kissed a painting of a tub, planting a big one near the bottom of the painting? The painting, "Bathtub," by Andy Warhol had to be restored using the atomic oxygen method since traditional solvent methods were unable to be utilized.
On a side note, worldwide an average of one collection or gallery suffers fire damage every day (estimated), and paintings damaged by charring are very resistant to traditional cleaning techniques. Current processes used to restore artwork generally use chemical solvents to remove dirt, varnish and thin layers of soot. With damage from heavy deposits of soot, or even charring or graffiti, these techniques are not effective. NASA found that atomic oxygen could remove layers of soot from charred paintings too. How? Because atomic oxygen will not react with inorganic oxides, such as most paint pigments, it could be used to restore paintings damaged by soot.

Below is a link portraying how atomic oxygen was used to restore the charred painting, Madonna of the Chair. The left photograph was taken after the Cleveland Museum of Art staff used acetone and methylene chloride to clean and restore the painting. The right half was taken after Glenn researchers used the atomic oxygen technique to clean the painting.
http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/67935main_atomicox_big.jpg

I just want to end this last post of mine by saying that I enjoyed my entire stay in Italy with 18 of the most interesting characters I have ever met, all of who I have grown to love in just a matter of a few weeks. Oh and Natalie, Daphne, and Jose, you guys aren't half bad either!!! Just playing, of course. Thank you, everyone (including Renzo, Gabriella, Daniela and the Italian students), for making this one of the most pleasant, exciting, and memorable experiences I have ever had! I hope to see everyone around during my final year of college at Emory! I love you guys!

Sources:

http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/everydaylife/AtomicOxRestoration.html