FLUORIMETRIC ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUENT DYES WITHIN DAYLIGHT FLUORESCENT PIGMENTS: IMPLICATIONS FOR DISPLAY AND PRESERVATION OF DAYLIGHT FLUORESCENT ARTWORK

Daylight fluorescent pigments are formulated with a select range of colorants that both absorb and emit strongly in the visible region. To ensure best practices in the preservation and authentication of artworks that contain daylight fluorescent colorants, this study investigates the fluorescent dye formulation behind daylight fluorescent pigments by specifically examining the DayGlo daylight fluorescent pigment range. A recently developed extraction-separation protocol was applied to isolate individual dye components of each pigment for fluorescence analysis. Through fluorimetric analysis at the constituent dye level, the formulation behind each pigment's observed hue was characterized and interaction by energy transfer between specific dye pairs was established. This research finds that complex dye formulations employed in daylight fluorescent pigment manufacture raise several implications for the display and treatment of this modern palette.