Can Hydrogen Peroxide solution bleach paper without touching the paper surface?

Question

As many webpages suggest, 3% hydrogen peroxide solution can be used to bleach paper by soaking the piece of paper into the solution. I tried and it is really quite effective.

However, if the piece of paper cannot be soaked in water (as it may have a high chance to get damaged), is it possible to put it a few millimeters above the hydrogen peroxide solution, and let the hydrogen peroxide vaporize and perform the bleaching? Does this way of bleaching work as good, not at all, or with a lower efficiency? Would I need a higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide?

Answer 1

Not 3% hydrogen peroxide, but if you can get the 50% solution it might work. However, it is dangerous to work with.

As described in the comments, hydrogen peroxide is less volatile than water, so when a hydrogen peroxide solution is vaporized the vapor contains a smaller percentage of $\ce{H2O2}$ than the liquid. But using a more highly concentrated solution can compensate for this, so the partial and total vapor pressure data given here indicate at at 20°C, a liquid phase that's 50% hydrogen peroxide gives a vapor that is about 3% hydrogen peroxide. So you can hold the paper close to the concentrated liquid and have 3% hydrogen peroxide condense on it. The danger is that if you touch the paper into the concentrated solution, you are combining a flammable material with a powerful oxidizer, so handle with care and away from other flammable materials.