Morphology and elemental composition of dustfall particles inside emperor qin's terra-cotta warriors and horses museum--颗粒学报PARTICUOLOGY

Hu, T., Li, X., Dong, J., Rong, B., Shen, Z., Cao, J., . . . Watson, J. G. (2006). Morphology and elemental composition of dustfall particles inside emperor qin's terra-cotta warriors and horses museum. China Particuology, 4(6), 346-351. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1672-2515(07)60288-7

Morphology and elemental composition of dustfall particles inside emperor qin's terra-cotta warriors and horses museum

Tafeng Hu ^a *, Xuxiang Li ^a, Jungang Dong ^b, Bo Rong ^c, Zhenxing Shen ^a, Junji Cao b ^a, Shun-Cheng Lee ^d, Judith C. Chow^{e b}, John G. Watson ^{e b}

a Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China
b SKLLQG, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an 710075, China
c Emperor Qin's Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses Museum, Xi'an 710054, China
d Research Center of Urban Environmental Technology and Management, Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
e Division of Atmospheric Sciences, Desert Research Institute, Nevada System of Higher Education, Reno, NV, USA

10.1016/S1672-2515(07)60288-7

Volume 4, Issue 6, December 2006, Pages 346-351

Received 11 May 2006, Accepted 19 November 2006, Available online 14 December 2007.

E-mail: hutafeng@163.com

Highlights

Abstract

Indoor dustfall samples were collected in Pit 1 and Pit 2 of Emperor Qin's Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses Museum in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China. The morphological and elemental analysis for long-term (>10 years) and short-term (∼0.5 year) dustfall particles and lacquer pieces on the faces of partly assembled warriors were performed with scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (SEM/EDX). The results showed that the majority of dustfall samples appeared to be composed of mineral dust particles, fly ash, and biological particles with different elemental compositions. Most of the mineral particles had irregular shapes with smooth edges. Small floccules of calcium sulfate were more frequently observed in long-term dustfall samples than in short-term samples, implying a progressive chemical reaction between continuous dustfall particles and atmospheric sulfur dioxide. Crystals of calcium sulfate were also found near pits on both inner and outer surfaces of lacquer pieces, revealing an acid chemical reaction between sulfur dioxide and lacquer material as the cause of the formation of erosion pits and cracks on surface of lacquer pieces.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

museum; indoor dustfall; morphology; elemental composition; SEM/EDX

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