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Preservation Methods

  • 01-11-2005 2:52pm
    #1
    cormie
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 20,845 ✭✭✭✭


    Hi,
    I'm really not a science head but thought this would be the best place to post anyway.

    I'm looking to find out how I would go about gathering up some fallen autumn leaves and moulding them together so they could be used as a lampshade that would last at least a good few years.

    So basically I would need to mould the leaves together and put on a solution that will preserve them so they do not fade away over a few months. The solution would also need to be able to withstand the heat of say a 60-100 watt bulb.

    I was thinking perhaps PVA glue? It dries clear and would withstand the heat I'm sure. Not sure about preserving the leaves though?!

    Would really appreciate any kind of feedback.:)


Comments

  • #2
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 93,857 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    preserving leaves is easy - put them in an old book for a while - leaf pressing

    preserving the green colour is the hard bit. I'm not even sure if it can be done because chloroplyll and other pigments are sensitive to light and are designed to biodegrade.


  • #3
    Pet
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,579 ✭✭✭Pet


    Firstly, I think PVA would be a bad idea, it would give off a lot of fumes when heated. You'd be better off using some kind of organic lacquer.

    Then, about keeping the colours in the leaves: you need something to stop the enzyme action that turns the leaves from yellow/red to brown..formaldehyde works, but is unfortunately very dangerous and toxic, so no. :D Perhaps if you heated the leaves in a short, sharp shock that would work though. That or an acidic solution, like soaking them in lemon juice for 24 hours or something.

    Think of this as a fun science experiment - you can try out different methods of preserving the leaves and see which works. It's a good idea btw, and you could try crossposting in the Crafts forum for some more ideas too.


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