New Study Reveals Toxic Dyes in Vintage Books

When dealing with brightly colored cloth-bound books from the Victorian period, it's important to be cautious or even avoid handling them. The vibrant colors of these books may come from dyes that can be harmful to readers, collectors, or librarians.

A recent study applied three different techniques—one new to book analysis—to identify dangerous dyes in a university library collection. These results, shared at the American Chemical Society fall meeting, suggest that some of these historical books may pose health risks.

Abigail Hoermann, a chemistry student at Lipscomb University, notes that these old books with toxic dyes could be found in various institutions, including universities, public libraries, and private collections. There is a risk if the pigments from the book covers come into contact with hands or become airborne and are inhaled.

To tackle this issue, Hoermann, along with Jafer Aljorani and Leila Ais, both recent graduates, and Joseph Weinstein-Webb, an assistant professor, conducted their research. This effort began when Lipscomb librarians Jan Cohu and Michaela Rutledge asked the chemistry department to investigate colorful 19th- and early 20th-century books from the Beaman Library. Their interest was sparked by similar work at the Winterthur Museum, which had previously tested 19th-century books for copper acetoarsenite, a toxic arsenic-based pigment.

The Poison Book Project is a global research initiative that uses methods such as X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and Raman spectroscopy to detect harmful pigments in books. Weinstein-Webb and his team started their own investigation in 2022, employing these techniques:

1. XRF to detect arsenic and other heavy metals in the book covers.
2. Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) to measure the concentration of these metals.
3. X-ray Diffraction (XRD) to identify the specific pigment molecules containing these metals. This method, although previously used for art and wallpaper, is being applied to book analysis for the first time in this study, with collaboration from Janet Macdonald at Vanderbilt University.

Their findings showed the presence of lead and chromium in some books. Samples of the book covers were dissolved in nitric acid, and ICP-OES revealed high levels of these metals. XRD analysis indicated that the metals were often in the form of lead(II) chromate, a pigment used by artists like Vincent van Gogh. However, the books had more lead than chromium, suggesting the dyes used might include other lead-based pigments.

The team also evaluated the potential health risks for librarians who handle these books. Some covers contained metal concentrations exceeding safety limits set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For instance, lead levels in the most contaminated samples were over twice the CDC limit, and chromium levels were nearly six times higher. Long-term exposure to these metals could lead to severe health issues, including cancer and lung damage.

In response to these findings, the Lipscomb library has started to store colorful 19th-century books in plastic zip-close bags to prevent handling and has removed books with confirmed dangerous dyes from public access. The research team plans to contribute their findings to the Poison Book Project and raise awareness about safe handling and storage practices for these books. They also hope to encourage others to use XRD for non-destructive testing, allowing libraries to check their collections without damaging them.