Corrosion mechanisms for lead-barium glass from the Warring States period

Abstract Lead-barium glass is subject to a variety of corrosion reactions after burial. The microscopic morphology and compositional structure of ancient lead-barium glass excavated from the Yaozhuang Cemetery located in Liuhe District of Nanjing were analysed with optical microscopy, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, fluorescent inverted microscopy and attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The corrosion products included PbCO 3 , Pb(OH)Cl, CaHPO 4 (H 2 O) 2 and BaS 2 . Based on the corrosion morphology and the corrosion products, it was concluded that the corrosion processes included microbial corrosion, surface chemical corrosion, and crack corrosion. This paper describes the corrosion processes of lead-barium glass relics and establishes the corresponding corrosion model. In addition, the results of this study deepen the understanding of the corrosion mechanisms for lead-barium glass and provide new insight into the corrosion mechanisms of excavated glass relics, which is also of great significance for the protection of lead-barium glass.