Nondestructive testing of objects from cultural heritage with NMR

Our world heritage is constantly facing the risk of being lost, either to severe weather conditions, chemical or biological attack, mishandling by conservators, inappropriate storage conditions, or even destruction by war. Science can provide the necessary tools for analyzing the objects of cultural heritage, assessing their state of conservation, and proposing suitable methods and strategies for preserving them for future generations. Nondestructive testing by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in this area of research is relatively new. It was made possible by the development of portable single-sided NMR sensors capable of recording NMR signals from samples that are exterior to the magnet. Nondestructibility and mobility are the two main features identifying mobile NMR as an essential tool for cultural heritage research.