Friendly Fungicides: testing fungicides containing tea tree oil (melaleuca alternifolia) to determine their safety for use on historic cellulosic textiles

Abstract

This research explores new fungicide treatments containing tea tree oil (Melaleuca
alternifolia) and will use a comparison with the product Preventol® ON-S. The effect on the
condition of both a new cotton fabric and a cotton textile from the Second World War
British Utility Scheme has been determined using colourimeter, FTIR-ATR, surface pH,
and tensile strength testing. More recent understanding of the types of fungi found on
cellulosic textiles and their growth mechanisms has been amalgamated, though the
fungicides have not been tested directly on fungi. An overview of current practices used in
textile conservation has informed both the theoretical principles and experimental design.
Two treatment methods were used, immersion and spot cleaning suing a vacuum suction
table. The spot cleaning treatments for both fungicides were found to be unviable due to
the vacuum causing undesirable staining and build up on the samples. The Preventol®
ON-S was found to have an overall negative effect on the condition of the textiles, but the
tea tree oil with emulsifier was determined an effective treatment, causing neutral or
beneficial effects on the condition, except on the tensile strength for the new cotton
samples.