Degradation of CdS Yellow and Orange Pigments: A Preventive Characterization of the Process through Pump-Probe, Reflectance, X-ray Diffraction, and Raman Spectroscopy

Cadmium yellow degradation afflicts numerous paintings realized between the XIXth and XXth centuries. The degradation process and its kinetics is not completely understood. It consists of chalking, lightening, flaking, spalling, and, in its most deteriorated cases, the formation of a crust over the original yellow paint. In order to improve the comprehension of the process, mock-up samples of CdS in yellow and orange tonalities were studied by means of structural analysis and optical characterization, with the principal techniques used in the field of cultural heritage. Mock ups were artificially degraded with heat treatment and UV exposure. Relevant colorimetric variation appears in CIE Lab coordinates from reflectance spectra. XRD, SEM-EDS, and Raman spectroscopy revealed the formation of cadmium sulfate, whilst time-resolved photoluminescence and pump-probe transient absorption spectroscopy suggest the formation of a defective phase, compatible with Cd vacancies and the formation of both CdO and CdSO4 superficial clusters.