Corrosion Degradation of Bronze and Iron Knives from Archaeological Sites of the Tashkent Region of Uzbekistan: Neutron Tomography Data

The spatial distribution of a corrosion in the volume of bronze knife discovered during archaeological excavations in the Quyun archaeological site, belonging to the Burgulyuk archaeological culture, as well as an iron knife found during work on the medieval site of Shodmalik-ota, was studied using the neutron radiography and tomography methods. Both archaeological sites are located in the Tashkent region of Uzbekistan. As a result of the research, the three-dimensional model of a bronze knife was reconstructed from neutron tomography data. A penetration of corrosion into the volume of this knife was analyzed. Several rounded cavities with an average size of 1.5(2) mm were found in the thickness of the blade of the bronze knife. From the reconstructed neutron tomography data, the structural features of the iron knife were revealed, and the corresponding volumes occupied by corrosion products were segmented from the total volume of the knife. It is established that the volume of corrosion is 338.77(1) mm 3 or 17.7% of the total volume of the iron knife.