Cyrene™, a Sustainable Solution for Graffiti Paint Removal

Graffiti can create detrimental aesthetic and environmental damage to city infrastructure cultural heritage requires improved removal methods. Incumbent laser, mechanical chemical techniques are often not effective, expensive or the substrate. Solvents generally hazardous always effective because of insolubility graffiti paint. This study proposes a simple strategy for safe removal, using bio-based, non-toxic biodegradable solvent dihydrolevoglucosenone (Cyrene™). The results showed that type substrate influenced cleaning performance; in benchmark studies non-porous was easy clean, while porous ceramic presence residual paint yellowing when conventional polar aprotic solvents were used. Cyrene, however, good removability from both glazed substrates, with little remaining pores tiles. suffered reversible change colour selective solubility its components N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone; no changes occurred Cyrene While N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone N,N?-dimethylformamide only neat, Cyrene–water mixture some results. performance validated Hansen parameters represents greener more sustainable removal.