Effect of air pollution on the deterioration of el-manial palace and museum for greater conservation of egyptian cultural heritage

Abstract

Ancient archaeological buildings are witness on human civilization and cultures. Saving and conserving of cultural heritage is an urgent priority in Egypt and worldwide. El-Manial palace and museum is one of the most important Egyptian ancient archaeological buildings. It has a great historical and cultural value due to the presence of personal valuable property and memorabilia of Prince Mohammed Ali Tewfik objects. It is also reflecting the settings and lifestyle of the late 19th and early 20th centuries of Egyptian Royal Prince and their apparent. Unfortunately the palace is situated in a very crowded and polluted spot, so this study has been carried out for measuring the effect of surrounding pollutants on the palace building and monuments collections on it. RH%, temperature, particulate matter (PM) and its ionic species and gaseous air pollutants (sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and formaldehyde) were measured inside and outside the museum. The annual mean concentrations of SPM in outdoor and reception hall exceeded both National and International limits. A/C ratios for all locations were greater than one, indicating that SPM were in acidic state, which had hazardous effect on the palace and its heritage constituents. Also, HCHO and NH3 gases concentrations were high if compared with previous studies. Moreover, SO2 and NO2 gases were higher than international standards which form a critical negative impact on the palace.