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New Characterization of Copper-Based Alloy and Nuragic Archaeometallurgy

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Metals and Alloys".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2022) | Viewed by 10102

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale S. Pietro 43/B, 07100 Sassari, Italy
Interests: archaeometry; NDT; XRF; tomography; Monte Carlo

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are managing a Special Issue entitled “New Characterization of Copper-Based Alloy and Nuragic Archaeometallurgy” to be published in the Materials (MDPI, IF 3.623) journal. The idea is to build a framework where new results and innovative spectroscopic approaches to the study of Nuragic metallurgy are reported and discussed. Thus, we are looking for potential contributions to this topic.

We kindly invite you to submit a manuscript for consideration and possible publication.

Dr. Antonio Brunetti
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • nuragic civilization
  • bronze
  • archaeometry
  • spectroscopy
  • cultural heritage
  • alloy
  • copper-based alloy

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 2540 KiB  
Article
Effect of Hydrogen Exposure Temperature on Hydrogen Embrittlement in the Palladium–Copper Alloy System (Copper Content 5–25 wt.%)
by Brandon Roy, Erin LaPointe, Andrew Holmes, Dillon Camarillo, Bonolo Jackson, Daniel Mathew and Andrew Craft
Materials 2023, 16(1), 291; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16010291 - 28 Dec 2022
Viewed by 1588
Abstract
The yield strength, ultimate strength, and elongation/ductility properties of a series of palladium–copper alloys were characterized as a function of the temperature at which each alloy underwent absorption and desorption of hydrogen. The alloys studied ranged in copper content from 5 weight percent [...] Read more.
The yield strength, ultimate strength, and elongation/ductility properties of a series of palladium–copper alloys were characterized as a function of the temperature at which each alloy underwent absorption and desorption of hydrogen. The alloys studied ranged in copper content from 5 weight percent copper to 25 wt.% copper. Compared to alloy specimens that had been well-annealed in a vacuum and never exposed to hydrogen, alloys with copper content up to 15 wt.% showed strengthening and loss of ductility due to hydrogen exposure. In these alloys, it was found that the degree of strengthening and loss of ductility was dependent on the hydrogen exposure temperature, though this dependence decreased as the copper content of the alloy increased. For alloys with copper contents greater than 15 wt.%, hydrogen exposure had no discernible effect on the strength and ductility properties compared to the vacuum-annealed alloys, over the entire temperature range studied. Full article
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14 pages, 5934 KiB  
Article
Combining X-ray Fluorescence and Monte Carlo Simulation Methods to Differentiate between Tumbaga and Gold-Alloy or Gildings
by Antonio Brunetti, Marta Porcaro, Angel Bustamante, Giovanni Stegel and Roberto Cesareo
Materials 2022, 15(13), 4452; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15134452 - 24 Jun 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1629
Abstract
Depleted metals have been produced since many centuries ago. Probably the most famous examples from ancient times are the so-called Tumbaga gold artifacts, whose production was introduced by the pre-Colombian civilizations. Tumbaga-like structures have been identified also in modern nanotechnological materials. In both [...] Read more.
Depleted metals have been produced since many centuries ago. Probably the most famous examples from ancient times are the so-called Tumbaga gold artifacts, whose production was introduced by the pre-Colombian civilizations. Tumbaga-like structures have been identified also in modern nanotechnological materials. In both cases, but specially for the ancient Tumbaga, due to their preciousness, their characterization should be obtained by non-destructive analysis. Several analytical protocols have been developed, some of them non-destructive, such as those based on X-ray Fluorescence, but the results obtained do not always allow for a reliable identification of Tumbaga with respect to gilding or single alloy samples. Besides the capability to distinguish between different structures of the sample, it is also important to obtain a quantitative estimation of its composition. In order to meet this demand, a new approach based on X-ray Fluorescence coupled to Monte Carlo simulations is proposed. It allows one to distinguish easily between the three manufacturing techniques and to quantify the composition of the sample without any destructive sampling. It constitutes a new tool for the study of complex alloy structures. The protocol is applied here to some ancient Tumbaga gold samples and is described in detail, comparing the results to those obtained with other techniques. Full article
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8 pages, 5017 KiB  
Article
The Strange Case of the Nuragic Offerers Bronze Statuettes: A Multi-Analytical Study
by Antonio Brunetti, Marta Porcaro, Sergio Lins, Francesco di Gennaro, Rosario Maria Anzalone, Mario Mineo and Anna Depalmas
Materials 2022, 15(12), 4174; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15124174 - 13 Jun 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2145
Abstract
The Nuragic civilization (Sardinia, Italy, XVIII–VIII B.C) developed a flourishing bronze metallurgy with strong connections with other civilizations from the Mediterranean basin. Within the large bronze production, there are some peculiar representations of human figures, known in the archaeological environment of Sardinia as [...] Read more.
The Nuragic civilization (Sardinia, Italy, XVIII–VIII B.C) developed a flourishing bronze metallurgy with strong connections with other civilizations from the Mediterranean basin. Within the large bronze production, there are some peculiar representations of human figures, known in the archaeological environment of Sardinia as bronzetti, depicting warriors, priests, and offerers. In this paper, an interesting couple of Nuragic statuettes representing offerers, one from the Pigorini Museum in Rome and another from the Musei Reali in Turin, were analyzed. They have been investigated with X-ray fluorescence integrated with Monte Carlo simulations (XRF-MC). The combined methodology provides more accurate results, ranging from the structural characterization to the identification of the corrosion layers to the estimation of the composition of the alloy of the artifact. One of the most striking results regards the heads of the offerers: both heads are covered with a thick iron-based layer, even though the whole artifacts are made of a copper alloy. To understand the reason behind this peculiar corrosion patina, several hypotheses have been considered, including the possibility that these iron mineralizations are the consequence of an ancient superficial treatment, intending to confer a chromatic effect on the figurine’s head. Full article
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12 pages, 2646 KiB  
Article
Nuragic Working Tools Characterization with Corrosion Layer Determinations
by Marta Porcaro, Anna Depalmas, Sergio Lins, Claudio Bulla, Matteo Pischedda and Antonio Brunetti
Materials 2022, 15(11), 3879; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15113879 - 29 May 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1404
Abstract
From the availability of metals to the technology and tools needed to transform them, roughly every civilization in the Mediterranean basin has a metalsmith story. Many of the objects produced by them share a few peculiar characteristics, usages, or even shapes. In this [...] Read more.
From the availability of metals to the technology and tools needed to transform them, roughly every civilization in the Mediterranean basin has a metalsmith story. Many of the objects produced by them share a few peculiar characteristics, usages, or even shapes. In this scenario, a class of objects that can be clustered by their usage, i.e., working tools, stands out from the crowd. For this study, a set of working tools from the Nuragic civilization (Sardinia, Italy) was researched with a non-destructive technique: X-ray Fluorescence (XRF). A quantification of the chemical species present in their alloy was obtained with the use of Monte Carlo simulations. The XRMC package, used for the simulations, managed for the first time to reproduce very complex corrosion layers and to thoroughly characterize them from a chemical perspective. The obtained results were discussed and compared to other results reported in the literature. Full article
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14 pages, 2792 KiB  
Article
Characterisation of Alloy Composition of Protohistoric Small Boat Models from Sardinia (Italy)
by Roberta Iannaccone, Anna Depalmas, Claudio Bulla, Sergio Augusto Barcellos Lins and Antonio Brunetti
Materials 2022, 15(4), 1324; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15041324 - 11 Feb 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2142
Abstract
The Sardinian protohistoric civilisation (Final Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age) has greatly contributed to the development of metallurgy in the Mediterranean area by producing a large number of bronze artefacts. Among them, small boat models (so-called “navicelle”) represent one of the [...] Read more.
The Sardinian protohistoric civilisation (Final Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age) has greatly contributed to the development of metallurgy in the Mediterranean area by producing a large number of bronze artefacts. Among them, small boat models (so-called “navicelle”) represent one of the most characteristic objects from the Sardinian Protohistoric civilisation. This work is an attempt to classify these boats on the basis of their alloy composition, provenience, and morphology. Due to the impossibility of removing the boats from the museum, alloys were characterised using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and Monte Carlo simulations. Fifteen boats were analyzed. Obtained results were compared to other performed analyses in the last few decades with different techniques and reported in the literature. Analyses allow for characterising both the bulk composition of ternary alloy Cu–Sn–Pb and patina thickness, offering useful information about their conservation status and the technological achievements of Sardinian craftsmen, while also providing information on smelting temperatures and casting techniques. Full article
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