What should I do if the paper file is soaked and dirty?

Archival information is scarce and unique, and if it is damaged or seriously damaged in a disaster and loses its useful value, it will cause irreparable losses. Therefore, strengthening the research on emergency rescue and protection countermeasures for flooded paper archives, enhancing the ability of archives departments to resist disasters, ensuring the safe storage and proper disposal of archives, and reducing the impact of disasters on archives to a minimum have become very important tasks facing the archival community.

So, let's take a look at the emergency treatment methods and steps for paper files that are soaked in water and have dirt:

The rescue methods of water-soaked paper archives mainly include: decontamination, dehumidification and drying, frozen disposal, and common disinfection methods.

(1) Decontamination methods

1. Dust removal treatment: The harm of dust to the archives is multifaceted, the dust is attached to various fungi, they will erode the archives, and the dust is particles with edges and angles, and the paper and other carrier materials and handwriting will be worn during the process of sorting out the archives.

For less polluted, a clean wool soft brush can be used to gently brush off the dust on the surface of the archive; For more obvious pollution, clean paper or plastic film can be laid on the workbench, the file is flattened on the top, and then the dust on the surface of the file is treated by a small vacuum cleaner, brush, etc. In the crevices, ear wash balls can be used to blow the dust out and suck it up. When working, attention should be paid to regular replacement, cleaning wool soft brushes and other utensils, the use of vacuum cleaners should have protective measures, the use of vacuum cleaners with adjustable suction to ensure dust safety. It is also necessary to clean the dust bag of the vacuum cleaner in time to avoid secondary pollution. Staff should pay attention to personal protection, such as wearing masks, cotton gloves, and cleaning in time.

2. Remove stains: If disasters such as floods and mudslides affect the archives, the damaged archives will be contaminated with sediment, mud and other dirt, or due to sticky substances in the mud or sewage, the paper will stick to each other. It can be treated by water washing, and the specific operation method is as follows:

A small amount of (local) mud spots decontamination method: pad a water-absorbing paper under the decontamination site, use a small brush to dip in water to remove mud spots, and then use water-absorbing materials such as filter paper to absorb moisture from the surface of the paper. When there are obvious mud spots (some are clay), water stains and other stains on the paper file, use a soft brush dipped in warm water (about 60 ° C) to gently remove, and then use absorbent paper to absorb water. It is also possible to lay the file flat on the desk, and raise one side of the desk to form a slope so that the sewage can flow out from the low place. For the decontamination of single-page archives, it can be placed on a glass plate and carefully removed with a brush dipped in water. With the help of a glass plate, the file is slowly moved to a flat and dry place, and the open water is removed with a water-absorbing material, flattened and naturally dried. Before treatment, the handwriting should be checked, and if water solubility is found, other methods should be used.

(2) Dehumidification and drying method

There are several methods for dehumidification drying: dehumidifier drying method, natural drying method and vacuum drying method.

1. Dehumidifier drying method: The principle of dehumidifier drying is to create a continuous low-humidity environment for flooding the archives, so that the moisture in the archives quickly evaporates to achieve the purpose of dehumidification and drying. In the dehumidification and drying, prepare a special room for dehumidification and drying, and maintain good sealing performance, equipped with a drying rack (multi-layer rack), air conditioning, high-power dehumidifier or multiple small dehumidifiers, the indoor temperature is controlled at about 20 °C ~ 25 °C, and the relative humidity is about 60%.

Specific operation requirements: the file is flattened on the workbench or drying shelf, you can also clip the absorbent paper in the file according to the actual situation to absorb the moisture in the paper (the total thickness of the absorbent paper can not exceed 1/3 of the thickness of the paper file), regularly turn the wet file, and replace the absorbent paper in time. When the water content of the paper drops to about 14%, it is stacked according to a certain thickness, and a certain pressure is applied to dry it to the normal moisture content (6% to 8%) in the flat state. In the process of dehumidification and drying, regularly monitor the indoor temperature and humidity, monitor the change of paper moisture content, check the operation of equipment such as dehumidifiers, and ensure the smooth progress of the work.

2. Natural drying method: This method is suitable for files with light water immersion. A dedicated room needs to be prepared with good ventilation conditions and enough space to place the damaged archives.

Specific operation requirements: the flooding file is flattened on the workbench, and the absorbent paper is used to repeatedly dehydrate until most of the water is sucked out. If the file absorbs more water, it should be wrapped in materials such as towels or absorbent paper, lightly pressed, and the open water should be removed repeatedly. In the natural drying process, the file paper is turned regularly, and the electric fan can also be used to enhance the dehumidification effect. Finally, the archives are flattened (refer to the dehumidifier drying method), or after the water-soaked archives are removed from the open water, the files of the same size are stacked together, and the water-absorbing paper is sandwiched between each volume of files (which needs to be replaced regularly), and finally the thin plate (cardboard) is placed and compacted with a certain weight, which can accelerate the removal of moisture. During the operation, the action must be light and slow to avoid damage to the paper.

For precious historical archives, handmade paper such as Yuanshu paper can be selected as absorbent paper, which is highly absorbent and can be dried in a short period of time, which is easy to reuse.

According to the experience of relevant cases, the combination of dehumidifier drying method, natural drying method and freezing disposal is a better way to deal with flooding files. First, the damaged files with light flooding are treated by natural drying method, and the more serious flooding is frozen for disposal, so that the dehumidifier drying method can be used in batches in a planned manner to complete the rescue work of flooding archives.

3. Vacuum drying method: The advantage of this method is that the archives are not easy to mildew and adhesion during the drying process, the deformation is small, and the traditional drying method can be avoided with long cycles and low efficiency, but it is necessary to have vacuum drying equipment and professional and technical personnel to participate, and the cost is higher.

(3) Frozen disposal

Water-soaked paper files may breed mold within 48 hours, so the rescued files should be sent to the freezing site in time, and the freezing temperature is generally about -20 °C; Deep freezing can also be performed at an initial freezing temperature of -30°C to -40°C. When the flooded archives are completely frozen, the temperature can be set at about -10 ° C.

When implementing frozen disposal, it is necessary to pay attention to details such as packaging, and the files that need to be frozen are packaged in plastic bags or other materials, and placed in parallel in a supporting plastic frame to avoid forming hard blocks during freezing and facilitate the next step. Then, use a waterproof pen to number on the plastic bag and register it in detail, and during the handling process, take it lightly. Special attention should be paid to the protection of special forms of archives, such as maps, large single-sided prints, etc., which have a considerable amount of paper that is soft and needs to be flattened on the support after packaging in plastic bags.

(4) Commonly used disinfection methods

Because flooding files are often accompanied by pollutants such as sediment, it is easy to breed bacteria, mold and other harmful organisms, so it is necessary to take measures such as air disinfection and ground disinfection during the rescue process.

1. Disinfection of air: ultraviolet disinfection method is adopted. Ultraviolet light is a low-energy electromagnetic wave, the bactericidal wavelength range is 200nm ~ 270 nm, with a strong bactericidal ability. This method is applicable to air disinfection in empty warehouses, and can also be used for air disinfection after the cleaning of the affected warehouses.

Application method: 30W low ozone ultraviolet lamp (calculated by 1.5 W/m2) is suspended at a height of 2 meters in the center of the room, and the disinfection time is 30 minutes. According to the degree of pollution, the irradiation time is appropriately extended. Ultraviolet light has a destructive effect on archives and cannot be used directly for archive sterilization. When operating, attention should be paid to the protection of personnel and operated in strict accordance with the instructions.

2. Disinfection treatment of the ground and articles: the application of new Jieer (chemical name: dodecyl dimethylbenzyl ammonium bromide) disinfectant, the agent odor is aromatic, strong bactericidal power, very low toxicity. Spray at a concentration of 2% to 5% on the ground of the rescue archive site, the disaster-stricken warehouse that has been cleaned up, and the instruction manual should be strictly followed when using.

3. Protective measures for staff: in the process of rescuing files, masks should be worn and work clothes should be worn; Pay attention to hand disinfection, wash with soap, and then soak with 0.1% concentration of neogel for 5 minutes.

Archives purification and sorting table