[Nhcoll-l] Identification of preservation fluid

[Simon Moore]

Hi David,

If you specimen is in a plexiglass container then it shouldn’t be in alcohol or the container would have become soft and gooey but not totally melted!  It may be in formalin but it could equally be in an embalming fluid.  These latterly contain a regular pharmacopoeia of chemicals ranging from methyl salicylate, phenol, formalin, glycols and some alcohol but those mixes are normally in glass containers.  Another alternative is the glycol-based preservatives including 2-phenoxyethanol but there are hardly volatile unless the specimen was kept somewhere unusually warm >20 degr. C?

I would start by decanting some fluid using a syringe and performing a Schiff test to see if any aldehydes are present; it’s useful to have some formalin made up to use as a control and see how coloured it becomes, also how quickly it reacts. Glycols are good in plexiglass but only for up to 5 years after which they (sometimes!) react and craze the container.  Also you have to check that these tissues don’t become too swollen/fragile if using these fluids in the longer-term.  If you have a moment look up the story of the racehorse called Phar Lap’s heart (in Australia) and which may give you some extra advice.

With all good wishes, Simon.

Simon Moore MIScT, RSci, FLS, ACR
Conservator of Natural Sciences and Cutlery Historian,
www.natural-history-conservation.com 




On 20 Oct 2015, at 17:09, David Dyer <DDyer at ohiohistory.org> wrote:

> I’ve read the interesting discussions on this list about how to distinguish formalin from ethyl alcohol solutions, but what is the best way to distinguish an unknown fluid? We’re working with a local science museum to help them preserve a specimen of a human heart. It’s in a square, sealed plexiglass container, so I’m guessing it’s a relatively recent specimen (thus probably not in formalin?). About one-third of the liquid has evaporated and the heart is beginning to be exposed to the air. I’ve seen photos of other heart specimens in similar containers, so I’m suspecting that they may have been produced by a commercial company for exhibits and teaching. Is it possible that the fluid could be one of the proprietary preservatives, such as ethylene glycol? Any way to distinguish between these and alcohol/formalin (other than the “sniff test”!)? Thanks for any advice!
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> Dave
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