NMR investigation of degradation processes of ancient and modern paper at different hydration levels

The degradation process of cellulose-made materials was investigated by means of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, with particular emphasis on the role of water and on the hydration mechanism of cellulose fibrils. To accomplish this, the structure and dynamics of water within ancient and modern samples with different aging histories were investigated. The results mainly indicated that hydrolytic and oxidative reactions provoked the formation of acidic by-products. Furthermore, degradation processes were enhanced by higher amounts of water because of the progressive consumption of the amorphous regions of the cellulose. We propose NMR experiments as a benchmark for characterization of the degradation state of paper, as well as for investigating the effectiveness of restoration treatments.