La caratterizzazione dei materiali tradizionali nella conservazione del patrimonio architettonico storico

The research concerns the study and analysis of traditional building materials to support the project of architecture conservation. The study of materials was conducted with scientific methods: analytical techniques used by the disciplines related to Earth Science and in particular by the mineralogy, petrology and geochemistry, and real application in the study of some historic buildings. Starting from a description of the methodology generally adopted for the materials characterization, the aim of this research is to rework a critical diagnostic-knowledge of traditional building materials to acquire a good knowledge of the ancient building. This research hasn’t chosen a follow standard procedure, preferring a non-methods adaptable to the uniqueness of the examined cases. The study analyzed the concept of knowledge in the conservation and consolidation of the ancient building, as a prerequisite for a project based on the principle of minimum intervention with conservative and structural choices compatible and lightly invasive. Was also introduced the concept of the knowledge of ancient techniques, as a further application of scientific materials analysis for historical and documentary studies. The level of knowledge was finally defined in relation to the assessment of seismic risk of the cultural heritage safeguarding, as well as reported in the guidelines published in the Official Gazette of 28/01/2008. The diagnostic procedure was been distinguished in two main phases: a first part concerning the macroscopic analysis, which include multidisciplinary studies with historical, archaeological and structural contributions; the second stage concerns the laboratory analysis. The latter was limited to physic-chemical and mineralogical-petrographic analysis techniques used by the disciplines of Earth Sciences. The theoretical knowledge was applicated in several cases, different for materials and aim. The research also pointed out the need to device a database system for collecting and sharing analysis data, otherwise hardly comparable and useful for further studies.