Abstract: In favourable conditions of low temperature and low oxygen concentration, archaeological waterlogged wooden artefacts, such as shipwrecks, can survive with a good state of preservation. Nevertheless, anaerobic bacteria can considerably degrade waterlogged wooden objects with a significant loss in polysaccharidic components. Due to these decay processes, wood porosity and water content increase under ageing. In such conditions, the conservation treatments of archaeological wooden artefacts often involve the replacement of water with substances which fill the cavities and help to prevent collapse and stress during drying. The treatments are very often expensive and technically difficult, and their effectiveness very much depends on the chemical and physical characteristics of the substances used for impregnation. Also important are the degree of cavity-filling, penetration depth and distribution in the structure of the wood. In this study, the distribution in wood cavities of some mixtures based on polyethylene glycols and colophony, used for the conservation of waterlogged archaeological wood, was investigated using synchrotron radiation X-ray computed microtomography (SR-A mu CT). This non-destructive imaging technique was useful for the study of the degraded waterlogged wood and enabled us to visualise the morphology of the wood and the distribution of the materials used in the wood treatments. The study has shown how deposition is strictly related to the dimension of the wooden cavities. The work is currently proceeding with the comparison of synchrotron observations with the data of the solutions viscosity and with those of the properties imparted to the wood by the treatments.

Abstract: In this contribution, we present an overview of the various techniques for combining atomistic molecular dynamics with Monte Carlo simulations, mainly in the context of condensed matter systems, as well as a brief summary of the main accelerated dynamics techniques. Special attention is given to the force bias Monte Carlo technique and its combination with molecular dynamics, in view of promising recent developments, including a definable timescale. Various examples of the application of combined molecular dynamics / Monte Carlo simulations are given, in order to demonstrate the enhanced simulation efficiency with respect to either pure molecular dynamics or Monte Carlo.

Abstract: The double phosphate Ca9In(PO4)(7) was obtained by solid-state reaction and was studied by room and high-temperature Xray powder diffraction, electron diffraction, high-resolution electron microscopy, second-harmonic generation (SHG) technique, differential scanning calorimetry, dielectric and conductivity measurements. The beta-Ca9In(PO4)(7) room-temperature phase is related to the mineral whitlockite and is similar to beta-Ca-3(PO4)(2). It has space group R (3) over barc, with unit cell parameters: a = 10.4008(1) Angstrom, c = 37.272(1) Angstrom, Z = 6. The structure was refined by the Rietveld method (R-wp = 4.69, R-I = 1.81). A reversible first-order beta <----> beta' phase transition of the ferroelectric type with T-c = 902 K is revealed by SHG, differential scanning calorimetry and dielectric measurements. The centrosymmetric beta'-Ca9In(PO4)(7) (973 K) has space group R (3) over barc, a = 10.4611(2) Angstrom, c = 37.874 (1) Angstrom (R-wp = 4.27, R-I = 4.11). Compared to the low-temperature beta-Ca9In(PO4)(7) structure, beta'-Ca9In(PO4)(7) can be described as an orientational disordering of the P1O(4) tetrahedra together with a calcium disordering on the M3 site. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science (USA).