IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v16y2024i24p11223-d1549122.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Biocides Based on Essential Oils for Sustainable Conservation and Restoration of Mural Paintings in Built Cultural Heritage

Author

Listed:
  • Dina Mateus

    (Techn&Art—Centre for Technology, Restoration and Art Enhancement, Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Tomar, Instituto Politécnico de Tomar, Estrada da Serra, 2300-313 Tomar, Portugal)

  • Fernando Costa

    (Techn&Art—Centre for Technology, Restoration and Art Enhancement, Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Tomar, Instituto Politécnico de Tomar, Estrada da Serra, 2300-313 Tomar, Portugal)

  • Vasco de Jesus

    (Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Tomar, Instituto Politécnico de Tomar, Estrada da Serra, 2300-313 Tomar, Portugal)

  • Leonor Malaquias

    (Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Tomar, Instituto Politécnico de Tomar, Estrada da Serra, 2300-313 Tomar, Portugal)

Abstract

Microbial deterioration poses a significant threat to built heritage, particularly mural paintings, where traditional synthetic biocides can have adverse environmental and material impacts. This study evaluates the effectiveness of essential oils derived from four aromatic plants—thyme ( Thymus mastichina L.), fennel ( Foeniculum vulgare Mill.), pennyroyal ( Mentha pulegium L.), and green lavender ( Lavandula viridis L’Hér.)—as natural biocides against microorganisms isolated from mural paintings in the House of Moscadim, an 18th-century manor house in Portugal. The antimicrobial activity of the essential oils was assessed using both direct contact and micro-atmosphere methods. Four microorganisms were isolated, including two bacteria, Bacillus wiedmannii and Bacillus mobilis , and two fungi, Penicillium brevicompactum and Cladosporium cladosporioides . Fennel essential oil exhibited the strongest antifungal activity against both fungal species, surpassing the efficacy of the commercial biocide Biotin T ® in some cases. Pennyroyal and lavender essential oils also showed significant inhibitory effects. The micro-atmosphere method demonstrated the potential for noninvasive application of essential oils while preserving the integrity of delicate mural surfaces. These findings suggest that essential oils, particularly fennel oil, constitute a promising natural alternative to synthetic biocides for the sustainable conservation of cultural heritage. Further research is recommended to explore their long-term effects and to optimize application techniques.

Suggested Citation

  • Dina Mateus & Fernando Costa & Vasco de Jesus & Leonor Malaquias, 2024. "Biocides Based on Essential Oils for Sustainable Conservation and Restoration of Mural Paintings in Built Cultural Heritage," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-16, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:24:p:11223-:d:1549122
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/24/11223/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/24/11223/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rita Reale & Laura Medeghini & Michela Botticelli, 2024. "Stealing from Phytotherapy—Heritage Conservation with Essential Oils: A Review, from Remedy to Sustainable Restoration Product," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-23, June.
    2. Xiaobo Liu & Robert J. Koestler & Thomas Warscheid & Yoko Katayama & Ji-Dong Gu, 2020. "Microbial deterioration and sustainable conservation of stone monuments and buildings," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 3(12), pages 991-1004, December.
    3. Roberta Russo & Franco Palla, 2023. "Plant Essential Oils as Biocides in Sustainable Strategies for the Conservation of Cultural Heritage," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-16, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Rita Reale & Laura Medeghini & Michela Botticelli, 2024. "Stealing from Phytotherapy—Heritage Conservation with Essential Oils: A Review, from Remedy to Sustainable Restoration Product," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-23, June.
    2. Catarina Pinheiro & Anna Beaumont & Francesca Cardinali & Annalisa Marra & Daniela Molinari & Gwendoline Fife & Julia Wagner & Cristina Galacho & Caitlin Southwick, 2024. "Access to Sustainability in Conservation-Restoration Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-14, September.
    3. Forough Armal & Luís Dias & José Mirão & Vera Pires & Fabio Sitzia & Sérgio Martins & Mafalda Costa & Pedro Barrulas, 2023. "Chemical Composition of Hydrophobic Coating Solutions and Its Impact on Carbonate Stones Protection and Preservation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-21, November.
    4. Li, Kaiyang & Zeng, Yimin, 2022. "Corrosion of heat exchanger materials in co-combustion thermal power plants," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:24:p:11223-:d:1549122. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.