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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Any Jewelry, post: 1361936, member: 2844&quot;]Thanks for checking it, Sandra. Other than the link I posted, no one seems to be convinced that the process can be stopped. The materials used in the production of celluloid were organic and apparently the breakdown is natural, although things can be done to slow down the onset of the deterioration. Most of which I had done already, for all my celluloid. But of course they all had a history before I got them. And in the case of this beauty the colouring agents could have something to do with the fact that it is the only one so far in my collection.</p><p><br /></p><p>&quot;Because of its composition, celluloid is inherently subject to continuous deterioration over time.&nbsp; The two major components of celluloid – cellulose nitrate and camphor – are organic in nature and fundamentally unstable.&nbsp; (Cellulose is found in cotton, flax, jute, and wood pulp; camphor is resin from an evergreen tree.)&nbsp; Cellulose nitrate molecules crystallize over time, and camphor evaporates following its expulsion to the surface of the object.&nbsp; The chemical fillers added to celluloid to promote flexibility make it even more unstable by migrating to the surface of the plastic and leaving the material tacky, brittle, warped, and distorted.&quot;</p><p><a href="https://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/enemies-of-the-curator-deterioration-of-celluloid-and-natural-rubber-objects/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/enemies-of-the-curator-deterioration-of-celluloid-and-natural-rubber-objects/" rel="nofollow">https://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/enemies-of-the-curator-deterioration-of-celluloid-and-natural-rubber-objects/</a></p><p><br /></p><p>I guess I will have to view them as natural products, with a natural aging process. Still makes me sad though.<img src="styles/default/xenforo/smilies/frown.png" class="mceSmilie" alt=":(" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>Here are some other sites I found, with a scientific research-based analysis of the problem and preservation:</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic30-02-003.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic30-02-003.html" rel="nofollow">http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic30-02-003.html</a></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserveogram/08-04.pdf" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserveogram/08-04.pdf" rel="nofollow">https://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserveogram/08-04.pdf</a>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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