Radiation effects on the integrity of paper

Books and documents attacked by fungi and insects have already been treated by radiation for disinfestations purposes. However, there is still need to investigate the influence of radiation on the cellulose paper structure. The aim of this research was to study the effects of radiation on paper properties, especially those related to strength and appearance.Paper sheets for this study were prepared in the laboratory, using bleached eucalyptus pulp as raw material. No additives were used to concentrate the attention only on the effects of irradiation on the pure cellulose matrix.The samples were irradiated at IPEN's 60Co Gammacell irradiator with six radiation doses, from 3 to 15 kGy at the dose rate 0.817 Gy/s. The properties of paper sheets were tested after irradiation and compared with unirradiated samples according to ISO methods. No significant changes were detected in paper samples irradiated up to 15 kGy.