Water-Proofing Solutions for Ceramic Masonry
Tomme: 64 (68) Fascicle: 3 | 2018
Pages: 9-18
Abstract text:
In the worldwide current context of preserving historic buildings, it has been established that moisture is the main cause of degradation. Most of the protected edifices are made of brick masonry, consolidated with lime or cement mortar, and no generally valid solution has been found for the elimination of ascensional moisture, as shown in the literature. A drainage method, extremely often used by the specialists in the restoration of historic buildings, is the injection of some solutions or emulsions into the lower part of the walls, in order to create a water-proof string course. This treatment is a subject widely debated by the scientific community, as no sufficient studies have been carried out to validate the results of these water-proofing systems. The aim of this paper is to determine, through experimental studies conducted in the laboratory, the influence of water-proofing treatments on ceramic masonry. In the study, small walls from solid masonry bricks, recently manufactured, and old ceramic elements, recovered from demolitions, were made. A part of the manufactured walls was consolidated with lime mortar, and the other part with cement mortar. After determining the level reached by the ascensional humidity, two types of drainage solutions were injected into the masonry: one silane-based and one silicone emulsion. Then, the masonry base wetting was resumed in order to determine the water ascension level after the application of the water-proofing treatment. The results of the experimental study showed that the ascensional humidity, obtained by injecting the solutions into brick masonry, decreased by about 60%. Moreover, the study demonstrated the creation of a water-proof string course over which the water from the capillary action cannot progress. Thus, both water-proofing solutions scored very good results, reducing ascensional humidity, but the influence of these treatments on buildings, where the degradation mechanisms caused by the presence of moisture are combined with freeze thaw phenomenon, crystallization of soluble salts, and the action of the environmental aggressive factors, remains to be studied.
Key Words:
water-proofing; brick masonry; moisture; capillary action; degradation
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