Head: Dr. Gabriel M. Bilmes Members:                   • Dr. Daniel J.Orzi                   •Lic. Fernando Alvira                   • Est. Leandro Jofré                   •Alberto Orsetti Alberto Orsetti: Restorator, Director of the Restoration Area, Culture Secretary, Bs As City government.

History

Work topics

• Research, development and services in the field of restoration, surface analysis and characterization of materials by using laser techniques.
• Laser ablation cleaning of surface dirtiness of patrimonial value objects (antique papers, manuscripts, sculptures, glass, metal, cloth or leather. pieces).
• Characterization of basic composition of materials using Plasma Mass Spectrometry generated by Laser Ablation (LIBS).
• Development of methods and instruments for industrial application and quality control of processes based on optics, spectroscopics, photoacoustics and luminescence techniques
• Specialization courses on Restoration and Cleaning using laser for restorers, architects, engineers, physicists, artists, etc.

The most relevant works

• A method for the determination of dirtiness on surfaces based on laser ablation and acoustic detection  was invented and patented (AR 9906271. Argentina).Applied Physics B. 82, 643. (2006).
• The First instrument, at worldwide level, that measures automatically and in real time the dirtiness on steel sheets produced for lamination was invented, patented (P000101241- Argentina and Patent 6.546.784 from 15-4-2003 to 15-4-2021in EEUU), constructed and installed in SIDERAR - Ensenada (Bs.AS- Argentina) -ELMES 1: Laser equipment for measuring– (Review of Progress in Quantitative Nondestructive Evaluation.Vol. 20,1944.
  American Institute of Physics, New York, . 2000. Surface Engineering Vol.18 N°1. 2002 y Latin American Applied Research. Vol.32 N3 -263- 2002). View Flash presentation
• A method for cleaning glassware using laser was invented and patented (Reg. 18/99 CUBA).(Laser cleaning of glassware by opposite incidence- III International Conference on Lasers in the Conservation of Artworks, Italia 1999).
• The laser damage thresholds were determined, and cleaning and removal of stains on antique papers, books and manuscripts were conducted. (Seminario Iberoamericano sobre Procesamiento de Materiales con Láser, 1999).
• A method that uses image processing by computers was developed to analyze the degree of cleanness of a surface when treated with several procedures, particularly by using laser techniques ( EFING 2000. La Habana-Cuba).
• The basic composition of pre-Hispanic archeological pieces found in Argentina and Chile by the LIBS technique was determined. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Optical Metrology 2005. International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE). 2005.
• A method that allows knowing automatically and on production line, the qualitative and quantitative  composition of the surface dirtiness present on sheets industrially produced was developed. Applied Spectroscopy 58, 7028 (2004)
• At present we are studying the presence of traces  of Magnesium and Strontium in teeth of hominids for their use as possible food and evolution indicator.

Collaboration with other institutions and research groups.

• Laboratorio de Electrónica Cuántica - Física- FCEYN-UBA. Argentina.
• Laboratorio de Tecnología Láser- Universidad de la Habana-Cuba.
• Secretaría de Cultura del Gobierno de la Ciudad de Bs.As
• Centro de Investigación Industrial -FUDETEC. Argentina.
• Empresa SIDERAR de Argentina

Available equipment

• Pulsed Nd-YAG lasers  (1064 nm, 532 nm, 355 nm, 266nm).
• A microscope.
• Spectrometers with CCD cameras
• Spectrophotometers 200-900 nm.
• Digital oscilloscopes (300 and 150 MHz).(300 y 150 MHz).
• A system of data processing  and optical and acoustical analysis of the cleaning
• An updated file of background, works and images related to the use of laser in cleaning and restoration and related topics

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