Restoration of the historical brick masonry

Abstract

The architectural heritage of Latvia mainly consists of manufactured materials. The Building of Riga City Council, Fortification Wall of Riga, Turaida's Palace, and Ventspils Castle are few examples of historical buildings of Latvia from 12th –17th centuries. These buildings were made from brickwork. Migration of the water-soluble salts and influence of frost in the winter are the major causes of mechanical damages in these structural brickworks because of crystallization and growing of salts or ice crystals. An increased corrosion of single brick or brick masonry fragments in the architectural monuments of the Middle Age was observed; and hence, it is necessary to replace these bricks with the new ones of the same size, color, and physical properties. The modern bricks produced in Latvia do not have the same physical and chemical characterizations; and therefore, new materials suitable for the restoration work of brick masonry need to be developed. The chapter describes the analyses of the historical bricks to determine their manufacturing processes, and then development of similar materials from local clays for the replacement of damaged original bricks in the historical buildings. The analyses are conducted by visual inspection, chemical analyses, X-ray diffraction, and mercury porazimeter for pore size distribution. The chapter discusses the results obtained from the analyses of the historical bricks.