Newest PTT Grant Recipients Initiate Important Preservation Projects
Nine locations across the country are currently undertaking cutting-edge preservation technology research as participants in the 2004 PTT Grants program. Secretary of the Interior Gail Norton approved the release of $300,190 for the projects, which are poised to benefit numerous preservation-related fields.
“Over the past decade, NCPTT has helped pioneer many important research projects that apply new technologies to solve preservation problems,” Kirk Cordell, NCPTT executive director, said. “Our newest PTT grant awards make it clear that this research continues to be vital to the preservation of our nation’s cultural resources.”
State governments, universities and non-profit groups are eligible to apply for funding through the preservation technology grants program. Each project is funded for one year with the option to reapply in subsequent years for ongoing research.
Projects funded in 2004 included the following:
- Water Transport Characteristics of Masonry Restoration Mortars; Rocky Mountain Masonry Institute, Denver, Colorado.
- Unreinforced Load-Bearing Masonry Structure Assessment by Modeling, Validation, and Testing; Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania.
- Protocol for Emergency Washing, Drying, and Sterilization of Historically Significant Books; University of Utah Marriott Library, Salt Lake City, Utah
- Microbial Detoxification of Mercury Contaminated Museum Collections; University of Colorado at Denver, Denver, Colorado.
- Using the General Land Office Records to Enhance Identification of Cultural Landscapes in North Mississippi; Mississippi State University, Starkville, Mississippi.
- Creating an On-line Library: Electronic Conservation and Distribution of 85 Years of Historic Masonry Articles; The Masonry Society, Boulder, Colorado.
- Complementary Geophysical Survey Techniques at Old Mobile; Friends of Old Mobile, Inc., Mobile, Alabama.
- Biofeedback: The Investigation of Historical Human Biological Materials; Institute for Science, Law and Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Illinois
- Supercritical Fluid Cleaning of Perishable Organic Artifacts for Non-destructive Radiocarbon Dating; Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas.
According to Fran Mainella, National Park Service director, the new projects will help promote the values of our national heritage.
“These awards further the mission of NCPTT,” Mainella said. “The recipients will undertake projects that promote preservation and conservation skills and technologies for the protection of America’s cultural heritage.”