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Natural and Synthetic Consolidants for Earth Heritage: A Review

  • Conference paper
Structural Analysis of Historical Constructions

Part of the book series: RILEM Bookseries ((RILEM,volume 18))

Abstract

Since ancient times, natural products have been used to preserve earthen structures. Old recipes with cactus resin, bee wax, or linseed oil, have passed through generations and, in some countries, are still used nowadays. On the other hand, 20th and 21st centuries brought synthetic products as a solution to restore and conserve historical buildings. Although these synthetic products were extensively studied for stone-based monuments, they are also being used in earth heritage. The act of consolidating a degraded surface is, in conservation field, one of the most sensitive points, since the options available do not offer reliable solutions. Most of the times, the product applied, specifically in earth heritage, do not embrace two of the most important aspects in any conservation procedure: compatibility and reversibility. This paper aims to review the main consolidants (natural and synthetic) commonly used in earth heritage conservation, and also to draw the attention for the importance of a solid diagnosis of the initial state of conservation. With this review, it was possible to understand a lack of homogeneity in the identification of decay phenomena, as well as in recognizing its mechanisms of occurrence, and consequently in choosing the proper consolidant or treatment.

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Acknowledgments

The support from grant PD/BD/114411/2016 is acknowledged. This work was partly financed by FEDER funds through the Operational Programme Competitiveness Factors (COMPETE 2020) and by national funds through the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) within the scope of project SafEarth PTDC/ECM-EST/2777/2014 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016737).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Conservation and Restoration, New University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Telma Ribeiro

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Telma Ribeiro, Daniel V. Oliveira & Paulo B. Lourenço

Authors
  1. Telma Ribeiro
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  2. Daniel V. Oliveira
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  3. Paulo B. Lourenço
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Correspondence to Telma Ribeiro .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima, Peru

    Rafael Aguilar

  2. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima, Peru

    Daniel Torrealva

  3. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima, Peru

    Susana Moreira

  4. University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA

    Miguel A. Pando

  5. University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Luis F. Ramos

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Ribeiro, T., Oliveira, D.V., Lourenço, P.B. (2019). Natural and Synthetic Consolidants for Earth Heritage: A Review. In: Aguilar, R., Torrealva, D., Moreira, S., Pando, M.A., Ramos, L.F. (eds) Structural Analysis of Historical Constructions. RILEM Bookseries, vol 18. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99441-3_215

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99441-3_215

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-99440-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-99441-3

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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