Study on Characteristics and Features of Re-corrosion on Archaeological Iron Nails after Conservation Treatments

Excavated archaeological iron objects are prevented from being corroded going through desalination which slow down being corroded. However archaeological iron objects are liable to be corroded due to the high ionization tendency even though they are stored in environment restricted from corrosion factors. Iron objects could be deteriorated more than just excavated. Therefore this study investigated about the characteristic of re-corrosion and the effect on objects. In study, archaeological iron nails in storage for 4 years after conservation treatments were tested. Optical microscopy and X-ray photography for appearance, XRD, SEM-EDS, Raman spectroscopy for chemical composition, IC for chloride ions concentration inside iron nails were used. As results, iron nails carried out conservation treatments measured a high concentration of chloride ions after the long storage period. The form of objects were not in good condition such as broken or destroyed when the high chloride ions concentration was detected. In addition, the yellow and red powdery corrosion product were detected on the boundary between corrosion products and substrates and they were identified as akaganeite which is symptom of active corrosion.