Mechanical study of a support system for cupping control of panel paintings combining crossbars and springs

Bertrand Marcon (1) , Paola Mazzanti (2) , Luca Uzielli (3) , Linda Cocchi (2) , David Dureisseix (4, 5) , Joseph Gril (1)

1 MAB - Mécanique de l'Arbre et du Bois
2 DEISTAF
3 DEISTAF
4 TMI - Tribologie et Mécanique des Interfaces
5 SMC - Systèmes Mécaniques et Contacts

Spring mechanisms have been developed, since late 1970s, to provide some freedom of deformation to the wooden supports of paintings; however, no scientific method is up to now available for optimizing their design parameters. This article deals with theoretical and experimental work on the replica of an actual wooden support restored in a Florentine laboratory. A model is developed to describe its deformational behaviour after an auxiliary support has been applied by means of springs. The main outcome of such a research, still on-going, is a numerical model verified experimentally, enabling a restorer to choose the most appropriate mechanical parameters for springs in order to obtain the desired control of deformations and stresses produced by the expected environmental conditions.

Mots clés: conservation; cultural heritage; finite elements; moisture-induced stress; panel paintings; wood structures

Domaines: Génie mécanique [physics.class-ph]; Génie mécanique [physics.class-ph]; Matériaux; Héritage culturel et muséologie

Bertrand Marcon, Paola Mazzanti, Luca Uzielli, Linda Cocchi, David Dureisseix, et al.. Mechanical study of a support system for cupping control of panel paintings combining crossbars and springs. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 2012, 13 (53), pp.5109-5117. ⟨10.1016/j.culher.2012.04.003⟩. ⟨hal-00703650⟩