Preliminary evaluation of green terpolymer of nano poly (methyl methacrylate/dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate/acrylamide) for the consolidation of bone artifacts

Abstract

Weakness and fragility are the main aspects of damage to archaeological bones in excavation areas, museums and storage facilities caused by improper conditions. The objective of the study is to assess the efficacy of nano-terpolymers composed of methyl methacrylate, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, and acrylamide, which have been synthesized under environmentally friendly conditions, for the consolidation of bone artifacts. To achieve this study, samples of modern sheep animal bones were prepared and subjected to thermal aging. Subsequently, these samples were treated with the prepared terpolymer at different concentrations. The treated samples were then thermally aged to test the efficiency of the material. The characteristics of the prepared terpolymer were measured using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and thermo gravimetric analysis (TAG). The bone samples treated with different concentrations of the prepared terpolymer were analyzed before and after heat aging using modeling, different microscopes and measurement of color change. The findings from the majority of investigation conducted in this study suggest that the ideal concentration of the polymer for the treatment of fragile and weak bones is 4 % followed by 2 % being the next most effective concentration. The 6 % concentration should be disregarded, as it produced unfavorable outcomes from a conservation perspective. Moreover, the density functional theory (DFT) investigation of the synthesized terpolymer with bone structure showed the electrostatic intramolecular hydrogen bond interaction with amino acids of collagen and calcium hydroxyapatite which gave it stability.