Abstract
Atmospheric environment affects the materials of historic monuments and their structure starting from the time of their construction. Daily and seasonal changes in temperature and humidity, wind, snow and rainfall, soluble salts carried by water, biological agents, pollutant gases and particulate matter are some of the agents in atmospheric environment that introduce weathering by physical, chemical and biological processes in the materials of the monuments such as natural building stones, bricks, mortars and plasters, mud brick etc. The weathering processes need to be well diagnosed by identification of main mechanisms of decay and major responsible agents, degree and depth of deterioration expressed with measurable parameters of physical, physicomechanical properties, and micro structural changes together with their distribution on the monument. Success of conservation treatments strongly depend on those diagnostic studies and compatibility of the treatments with the deteriorated and relatively sound parts of the historic materials. Current approach to materials conservation is to be able to make minimum intervention to historic material by targeting the conservation treatment to the deteriorated area for the purpose of controlling the deterioration factors and achieving compatible and durable conservation of historical material. In this presentation, two examples of diagnostic research and conservation treatments based on and guided by the diagnostic results are summarized concerning historic stone monuments exposed to atmospheric environment since more than two thousand years. The first example is on the marble walls of Temple of Augustus in Ankara exposed to polluted urban atmosphere. The second example is on the limestone statues of Nemrut Mount Monument in Adıyaman-Turkey, exposed to rural atmosphere with harsh climatic conditions. Finally, a brief discussion on current research issues related to historic materials conservation in atmospheric environment is made.
Highlights
Materials of historic monuments and their structure are affected by the atmospheric environment they live in since the time of their construction
And seasonal changes in temperature and humidity, wind, snow and rainfall, soluble salts carried by water, biological agents, pollutant gases and particulate matter are some of those agents in atmospheric environment that introduce some changesby physical, chemical and biological processes.In time, those weathering processes cause considerable changes in microstructure of stone, such as increase in porosity, decrease in mechanical properties, quite a number of changes in chemical composition etc. starting from exterior surfaces towards interiors of the stone
Diagnostic analyses aim at finding out the main process of decay and its responsible decay agents as well as the degree and extent of decay on the material and its distribution on the monument. They serve as a guide for the selection and development of conservation treatments
Summary
Materials of historic monuments and their structure are affected by the atmospheric environment they live in since the time of their construction. Starting from exterior surfaces towards interiors of the stone. Those changes are visible by change in color, detachments as scales and flakes, crack formation, material loss as powdering, granular disintegration, outbursts etc. Diagnostic analyses aim at finding out the main process of decay and its responsible decay agents as well as the degree and extent of decay on the material and its distribution on the monument. They serve as a guide for the selection and development of conservation treatments. Diagnostic studies and conservation treatments research about two important monuments in Turkey, namely marbles of Temple of Augustus and limestone statues of Nemrut Mount Monument are summarised and discussed
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