A Risk Assessment of Piql Services by FFI

very long time without showing notable changes in their mechanical properties. 30 This makes no mention of the quality of the water, however, and we must assume that the filthy water the piqlBoxes is exposed during the scenario regarding a flood, where the water is mixed with mud, vegetation and rocks, debris and remnants of buildings, and also possibly human bodies, at the very least necessitates their replacement, as their longevity can no longer be guaranteed. Though the plastic in the piqlBox is water resistant, that does not make the piqlBox water-proof. They are only splash-proof, which should protect the piqlFilms inside from exposure to much of the water from a sprinkler system, but as the piqlBox is not air-tight, water may find its way into the piqlBox and come in contact with the piqlFilm. If the piqlBoxes are submerged in water, this will most certainly be the case. In situations like these, we can assume that the gelatine emulsion, and not the PET base, of the piqlFilm is the weakest link. Shorter periods in colder water should cause little damage to the information on the piqlFilm, especially if they are immediately rewashed and dried properly. 31 If not, the integrity of the information may be compromised and the availability of the information is lost. When the piqlFilms are exposed to water that is acidic or basic (alkaline), or of a higher temperature, as may be the case during a flood, the resulting effects are quite different. We can safely assume that neither the polyester nor the gelatine emulsion of the piqlFilm will hold up long under these conditions. The gelatine would likely dissolve, and the piqlFilms would be damaged beyond repair. It would no longer be possible to verify the integrity of the information, and its availability would be lost. We conclude this discussion of the effects of water on the Piql Preservation Services with one final note, though it may be obvious: The water would have a very negative effect on the piqlVault system. As an automated system, whose operations entirely consist of electronics, water is very damaging. Exposure to water causes the electronics of the system to short-circuit and the operations of the system to shut down. As mentioned previously, manual recovery of the piqlBin would then be necessary, compromising the availability of the piqlFilms for quite some time. An additional risk faced by the Piql Preservation Services where there is need for testing before we can say anything definitive on the subject is the issue of how the piqlBox and piqlFilm can withstand different degrees of physical pressure from an overhead load before the piqlFilm is damaged beyond repair. In our scenario descriptions of an earthquake and a terrorist act where a bomb damages the building which houses the piqlVault, slabs of concrete either fall onto the grid of the piqlVault system or are propelled against it. Naturally, the piqlBoxes and –Films hit directly by bigger pieces of concrete are crushed. Yet the question remains how the piqlBoxes and –Films trapped beneath smaller pieces of concrete fare. These pieces would not initially 9.1.6 Physical Pressure from Overhead Weight

30 The assertion that the piqlBox and piqlFilm can be subjected to water without causing much damage was part of an email correspondence with Harry Øysæd, Senior Researcher at Norner AS, on 21.01.16, where he quoted ―Chemical Resistance, Volume 1 – Thermoplastics‖, PDL (Plastic Design Library) Handbook Series, second edition, 1996. 31 The assertion that the piqlBox and piqlFilm can be subjected to water without causing much damage was part of an email correspondence with Harry Øysæd, Senior Researcher at Norner AS, on 21.01.16 .

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FFI-RAPPORT 16/00707