Digital BW, The Print

If you ever visited Italy, you probably noticed that any church older
than 100 years has a room where older documents, often related to a
Saint or to some religious activities, are displayed. No matter how
well those old documents are conserved, usually behind thick glass and
illuminated by controlled artificial light, they show signs of
deterioration, at the very least with yellowing of the paper and
deterioration of the structure of the medium. You can assume that the
substances present in the paper, paper sizing  and the ink are quite
natural, given the status of chemistry at that time and that the
amount of UV seen by those documents is pretty low, given the way they
are conserved. Nonetheless, the old documents deteriorate. The main
culprit is not UV. It is oxidations.

Those of you who visited my site knows that Daniela and me have done
extensive research on the chemicals involved in the manufacture of
inkjet paper and ink. Here is an example of what is in the paper:
http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/6808769/description.html
Commercial papers are a real disaster for fine art applications. The
manufacturer aiming at commercial applications have other worries than
conservation. Most notably: a) quick drying of the image, b) deep
blacks c) quick spray of the ink with low dot gain.

Besides PVA (the commercial White Glue), one of the worst chemicals in
the paper is silica, used for fast drying of the ink. Silica absorbs
any moisture in the environment, including the pollutants and keep the
latter forever.
Inks are even worst. The largest component of MIS Eboni or Ink
Specialist Matte Black, for example, besides water, is Diethylene
Glycol, a refrigerant close brother of Polyethilene Glycole used in
your car radiator. Ever noticed the warning of avoiding dropping
radiator fluid on your car's paint? Other substances in the ink are
dispersant to keep the pigments in suspension (like PVA again) and
surfactant to make the ink flow faster (like the ButylCellosolve
contained in your Simple Green degreaser).

Large Corporations wants to sell their stuff to us. They need the
imprimatur of archivability and advertise the few good stuff like
"Carbon Pigment" or "100% Cotton", but hide all the rest. Ever noticed
that Wilhelm Research only tests for UV? Under encouragement by one
person who contacted my regarding archival testing, I asked them if
they were willing to test the Carbon-Gelatine printing technique. The
did not even replied to me. I dont blame them for that. UV testing is
easy compared to testing  deterioration with time.

If archival for you means keeping your Family Photo Album through your
retirement, look no further. But if you are a fine-art collector
willing to invest hundred of thousand of dollars in a print, would you
put your investment in an inkjet print?

Thanks.

  Mantinieri
www.mantinieri.com