Smart Soft Nanomaterials for Cleaning

Numerous works of art, belonging to the classic and modern/contemporary production, are in need of cleaning. This requires the development of smart materials able to grant safe and specific removal of surface dirt and aged coatings/adhesives. Soft matter, colloids, and materials science have allowed the formulation of nanostructured cleaning fluids, such as oil-in-water systems, where solvents are dispersed in aqueous phase as nanosized droplets. This decreases the amount of neat solvents used in the formulation while maintaining good cleaning effectiveness. Moreover, gels have been formulated to confine the cleaning fluids so as to reduce their volatility and minimize the risks associated with their uncontrolled release on artistic substrates (e.g., leaching of dyes/pigments, swelling of painted or sensitive layers, etc.). These gels overcome the limitations of traditional thickeners in terms of mechanical properties and retentiveness. This chapter summarizes the results obtained in the last decades in the field of colloid science and soft matter applied to the cleaning of artifacts, reporting on some significant case studies that involve both classic and modern/contemporary art.