After careful consideration, I come to the conclusion that it is best not to carry out the experiment. There are simply too many influencing factors and the results would not be as meaningful as I first imagined. I would like to take this opportunity to thank u/Far_Marsupial6303 and u/lordsmurf- for their input. Through their critical questioning, I was able to reveal several weaknesses.

Hello! Thank you for taking the time to read through this post and share your thoughts. I'd also like to share my thoughts with you:

Blu-ray is not archival. This is likely true, and I share skepticism about the claimed lifespans from manufacturers. Some producers have marketed Blu-rays as the ultimate medium, with Panasonic, for instance, promoting TÜV Rheinland-certified discs with a 50-year archive life. (Quoting marketing materials: "The test result shows that Panasonic Blu-ray Discs offer more than 50 years of expected archive life at a room temperature of 25˚C and a relative humidity of 80%"). I've previously discussed the "trickery" in this field in another comment. All statements, whether from manufacturers or scientific sources, should be approached with caution.

CD-R is not archival. Interestingly, in some studies, CD-Rs perform decently, sometimes even better than later generations (DVD, BR). Several manufacturers sell "Archival CD-Rs," such as Mediarange with the product MRPL510 (gold-plated). The question is whether this is all just marketing or if these discs indeed have better properties. In my view, this question cannot be answered with a simple "yes" or "no," which is why I want to examine different models.

Thank you for your comment on the term "burn quality." I admit I need to be more precise in my wording. I also need to investigate which data I can truly capture and which I cannot. Temperature is an important and often overlooked factor. It seems that some drives can read internal temperatures, but I need to delve deeper into this. If I cannot measure internal temperature, I've considered measuring the temperature of the drive case to approximate a value.

Statistical relevance. You're absolutely right; the sample size is small, and the significance is limited. The question, however, should be whether we want to satisfy statistics or generate data that can help people in the real world. I live in Austria, where manufacturers like Verbatim and Mediarange are popular. Does it make sense to examine Ritek storage media if they are not available here? I want my work to provide answers about the current quality of popular blanks for those who may undertake a project with optical media.

I appreciate your mention of IBM. It's fascinating to see how strongly some companies take a position. Looking at marketing materials for Sony Everspan / Optical Archive products, one might believe optical storage is the answer to all questions. Cloud? Who needs it? But please, let's not get started on IBM. Last year, I attended a presentation on quantum computers, and IBM presented itself as a cool, hip, almost-startup. As a Steve Jobs fanboy, I must adopt his view on IBM. Thinking about it, I shouldn't like Blu-ray either, as Steve was not a big fan ("Blu-ray is a bag of hurt").

Regarding your last point about approval: Nothing is finalized yet. I've discussed it with my supervisor, and he didn't seem completely opposed. You're right; I need strong arguments to justify the relevance of the topic. Do I have all the arguments ready today? Honestly, no. However, I am convinced that optical media will continue to play a role. The exact nature of this role depends on many factors.

I want to thank you again for your input; it has been very helpful, and I will definitely consider it. If you have any more approaches or thoughts, please let me know!