On the Thermal Stresses Due to Weathering in Natural Stones

On the Thermal Stresses Due to Weathering in Natural Stones

Natural weathering is known as one of the key mechanisms causing degradation in building materials. Great efforts have been made to develop new materials and new processes for protecting those that already exist. Natural stones are an example of a natural material that has been extensively used for...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied sciences Vol. 11; no. 3; p. 1188
Main Authors: Ito, William Hideki, Scussiato, Talita, Vagnon, Federico, Ferrero, Anna Maria, Migliazza, Maria Rita, Ramis, Jacqueline, de Queiroz, Paulo Ivo Braga
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Basel MDPI AG 01-02-2021
Subjects:
Air temperature
Building materials
Chemical interactions
Construction
Construction materials
Durability
Heat
International standards
Marble
Mineralogy
Natural stone
natural stones
natural weathering
Oxidation
Radiation
Reynolds number
Slabs
Stress concentration
Stress distribution
Temperature
thermal heat flux
Thermal stress
thermal stresses
Weathering
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Summary:Natural weathering is known as one of the key mechanisms causing degradation in building materials. Great efforts have been made to develop new materials and new processes for protecting those that already exist. Natural stones are an example of a natural material that has been extensively used for building construction since ancient times. In addition, they fit durability, aesthetic, and mechanical requirements. Thus, they still have great importance in the construction business nowadays. Though chemical interactions in natural stones, such as oxidation or hydrolyses, have been widely studied, in the last few decades, the physical weathering due to daily temperature variations has begun to be considered as a key mechanism of degradation and has been incorporated in international standards. This process is particularly important in calcitic marble slabs, where it can cause extensive damages to facades. Consequently, there are restrictive rules for the use of marble as an external coating material in many countries. In this paper, the thermal stresses induced by daily variations in temperature are calculated using geographic and meteorological information. The concept of sol-air temperature is used to estimate the temperatures of the hidden and exposed surfaces of a slab, and Fourier’s law and the theory of elasticity are used to calculate the temperature and stress distribution, respectively. The proposed methodology allows for a detailed reconstruction of the stress induced inside marble slabs using parameters commonly acquired in meteorological stations as input data. The developed methodology was validated by comparing in-situ measurements of the temperature of a building in Pescara (Central Italy). A good correlation between the theoretical and real temperatures was found; in particular, the peak tensile stresses inside the slabs were estimated at 75 kPa.
ISSN:2076-3417
2076-3417
DOI:10.3390/app11031188