Museums & Libraries

Air pollutants that endanger cultural relics and documents mainly include sulfur‑containing compounds, nitrogen oxides, chlorides, particulate matter and microorganisms. Four key pollutants — formic acid, acetic acid, nitrogen dioxide and ozone — can undergo chemical reactions with more than 20 types of cultural‑relic and artwork materials. Damage to cultural relics and artworks represents a process where quantitative change leads to qualitative deterioration.

Removal of particulate matter, corrosive gases and oxidizing gases in exhibition and preservation environments, together with inactivation of airborne mold and viruses, creates a stable and clean storage condition. This delays, to the greatest extent possible, physical‑chemical decay and eventual degradation of precious cultural relics and documents, realizing the long‑term preservation of cultural relics, documents and artworks.

Museum

Museums host a wide range of indoor air pollutants. Acid gases, which severely threaten cultural relics and artworks, corrode metals, especially when combined with oxidants. Acid gases also erode cellulose and dyes and embrittle leather. Sulfur dioxide, largely originating from outdoor atmospheric pollution, is the most‑concerned acidic pollutant for museums and art galleries. As an oxidizing agent, ozone triggers oxidative corrosion of cultural relics and artworks.

Library

Indoor air pollution constitutes a major hazard to library collections. Book‑preservation environments directly determine the service life of documents. Paper absorbs acidic gases from ambient air, giving rise to paper acidification, dye fading and accelerated aging, which drastically shortens paper lifespan. Mitigating indoor air pollution and improving air quality are of great significance for extending paper service life and better protecting books.

Archive

Air pollution directly affects the physical and chemical properties of various archival media. Inorganic pollutants including sulfur‑containing compounds represented by sulfur dioxide, as well as nitrogen oxides such as nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, react with water to generate harmful acids. These acids raise paper acidity, accelerate hydrolysis of cellulose into brittle hydrocellulose, degrade paper and reduce its durability.

Furthermore, slow chemical reactions between acidic gases and gelatin materials of archival photographs cause negative‑film yellowing and color‑photo fading. Organic oxidants such as formaldehyde and toluene, along with nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons, initiate a series of photochemical reactions under sunlight. These reactions oxidize and degrade paper fibers, resulting in yellowing, embrittlement and shortened archival service life. These pollutants also exert bleaching effects, causing varying degrees of discoloration and fading of handwriting materials with poor durability.

EcoKeeper removes particulate matter and gaseous chemical contaminants in collection‑storage environments, and inactivates airborne mold and viruses. It slows collection degradation, extends preservation lifespans, and delivers a stable, clean environment for the preservation and exhibition of cultural relics, documents and artworks.