Vinegar syndrome revisited

[lunacels]

Hi all,
One of the cels I recently received is definitely emitting a faint vinegar aroma. Or moderate vinegar aroma. Either way, it is disconcerting. I've already quarantined the cel and placed an order for microchamber paper, but has anyone ever looked into conservation technqiues by S/R Laboratories? I found a blog post from them (http://www.blogs.srlabs.com/tag/vinegaring-syndrome/) and thought about contacting them for more information and/or a quote.

Thanks!

[Jadeduo]

Hi Luna-art!

IT is a scary thing when you notice that slightly sour smell! I received a DBGT cel a while back with the it over the summer and I have been airing it out away from other cels since, the smell has dissipated quite a bit, the edges of the plastic are still a little curled inward, however I think if get it in it's own book it should flatten out a bit. I also worry that because this is an inevitable chemical reaction what can we do? I also wonder what exactly they do when they say they make the chemicals in your cel effectively inert? What exactly do they do to it? Is it dipped or sprayed with chemicals? Is it basically sealed against everything?

The microchamber paper is great I highly recommend getting it, it seems to have helped with the chemically smell that lives in a lot of the newer pieces I have gotten in and I think it helps slow this seriously frightening process.

I'm sure this doesn't help at all... but that's just my two cents!
JD

[sensei]

I also wonder what exactly they do when they say they make the chemicals in your cel effectively inert? What exactly do they do to it? Is it dipped or sprayed with chemicals? Is it basically sealed against everything?

That is my concern. I have heard from another collector that bathing the cel in sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) reduces the smell dramatically. That might be the same basic premise as S/R Labs's process: loading the acetate with an alkaline or acid-neutralizing compound, then (apparently) coating it with some kind of transparent sealant. But I worry that routinely doing so may have other consequences, e.g., color shifts in cel paint. A similar practice of spraying paper with calcium carbonate has gotten mixed reviews among collectors of other kinds of paper artifacts because of visible color shifting as a result.

The microchamber paper route has, at least, the advantage that it neutralizes acidic reactions without becoming part of the cel or sketch.

But I'd be happy to hear more, as S/R Labs have worked with Disney, who has a huge archive of original art from the classic animated films of the 30s-60s.