IDENTIFICATION OF PROTEINACEOUS BINDING MEDIA IN PAINTINGS BY AMINO-ACID-ANALYSIS USING 9-FLUORENYLMETHYL CHLOROFORMATE DERIVATIZATION AND REVERSED-PHASE HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID-CHROMATOGRAPHY

Identification of binding medium, the vehicle which adheres pigment particles to each other and to a backing or substrate, is important to both art conservators and curators. Proteinaceous binders such as egg, glue and milk casein have been widely used by artists. A protocol for the identification of different proteinaceous binding media in paintings was developed using HPLC analysis with fluorescent detection of 9-fluorenylmethyl chloroformate (FMOC-CI) derivatives of amino acids. A scheme based on peak area ratios of FMOC-amino acid derivatives was developed and successfully used on museum samples. The sample preparation techniques, identification scheme and museum applications are discussed.