Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

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Construction and Building Materials

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/conbuildmat

Non-destructive techniques as a tool for the protection of built cultural

heritage
Antonia Moropoulou ⇑, Kyriakos C. Labropoulos, Ekaterini T. Delegou, Maria Karoglou, Asterios Bakolas
National Technical University of Athens, School of Chemical Engineering, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Street, Zografou Campus, Athens GR15780, Greece

h i g h l i g h t s

 NDTs are valuable for the protection of built cultural heritage.

 NDTs can assess the preservation state of materials and structures.
 NDTs can evaluate the efficiency of restoration/protection interventions.
 NDTs are integrated into information systems for effective planning of interventions.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Recent technological developments in the field of non-destructive techniques have enhanced their use-
Available online 11 April 2013 fulness in the field of built cultural heritage protection, and are indispensable tools for the characterisa-
tion of materials, detection of wear and degradation of materials, assessment of interventions’
Keywords: effectiveness and evaluation of compatible materials and processes. State-of-the-art techniques such as
Built cultural heritage digital image processing, infrared thermography, ground penetrating radar, ultrasonic testing and
Non-destructive techniques fibre-optic microscopy, and their respective signal and image analyses, validated by in-lab analyses, allow
Ultrasonic testing
the successful implementation of an integrated approach for the protection of built cultural heritage
Infrared thermography
Fibre-optic microscopy
which encompasses scientific support to decision making.
Ground penetrating radar Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Digital image processing

1. Introduction and do not require destructive sampling, is preferred. Recent re-

search and developments on their sensors and associated data
The sustainable maintenance, preservation and revitalisation of analysis software have enhanced their usefulness and are
built cultural heritage, and in particular historic sites and monu- nowadays an indispensable tool in the field of cultural heritage
ments, have been the focus of significant efforts from the scientific protection for the characterisation of materials, detection of their
and technical community. In the past, decisions regarding conser- wear and degradation, assessment of the effectiveness of interven-
vation interventions and protection of monuments were largely tions and evaluation of compatible materials and processes
based on prior experience, on inadequate and non-systematic applications.
identification of the prevailing problems and on available techno- Decay of the building materials can be defined as the degrada-
logical resources. This approach, however, limited the effectiveness tion over time of the materials’ properties (physical, chemical,
of the implemented interventions, whereas, in some cases even mechanical, etc.) and characteristics (mineralogical, texture,
caused more decay to the monuments. etc.), leading to their failure as building components. Decay phe-
Although a large array of analytical techniques are available, nomena develop at the interface of materials with the environ-
that can be used in the field of built cultural heritage protection, ment or at the interface of materials with other materials and
the difficulties associated with the accessibility and irreversible are a function of intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The analysis of
destructive sampling on monuments do not permit extensive use these factors is essential to the study of the decay pathology of
of such available analytical resources. In contrast, the use of the monument, but also in helping to elucidate the information
Non-Destructive Techniques (NDTs) that can be applied in situ obtained by the NDT. Intrinsic factors include the type of building
materials, their properties, their mass distribution, their origin
⇑ Corresponding author. and the processing technology, their ‘‘history’’ (prior conservation
E-mail address: [email protected] (A. Moropoulou). interventions) and their compatibility with other materials.

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.03.044
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1223

Extrinsic factors include the climate characteristics (distribution, 2.1. Digital Image Processing (DIP)
orientation, and amplitude of environmental factors), the prevail-
ing microclimate, the type of the atmosphere (urban, marine, etc.), Digital Image Processing (DIP) refers to the use of software to
the action of water (aerosol, rain, rising damp, condensation, and perform image processing on digital images, allowing to classify,
salt crystallization) and the monument’s static and dynamic load- to extract features, and to recognise patterns on architectural sur-
ing patterns. The decay of materials under the environmental faces of monuments [3], both at the macroscale (photographs) and
loads is not generalised. Each case should be dealt in the direction the microscale (images from fibre-optics microscopy [4,5], scan-
of revealing the specific active decay mechanism. This is per- ning electron microscopy [6]). The basic principle of the method,
formed at two scales, the macroscale, which focuses on determin- at macroscale applications, is that the different levels of light re-
ing the type of decay (morphology), and the microscale, which flected and diffused by the surface, correspond to the structural
focuses on determining the kinetics of the phenomenon (decay characteristics and the degree of weathering of the surface under
rate) and its thermodynamics (susceptibility to decay). NDT, un- investigation. DIP converts the varying surface energy content,
like many analytical techniques, are advantageous as they can interpreted through the colour variations of a captured image, to
be used at both levels. a pseudo-colour system, which renders and perceives the real deg-
In the past, incompatible conservation interventions and/or the radation process. The final output arises from the application of a
use of incompatible materials has caused significant damage and proper pseudo-colour system through the process of applying var-
enhanced the decay in historic buildings/monuments. Instead, ious colour maps and by assessing and evaluating them with phys-
decision making regarding interventions on built cultural heritage icochemical retrieval codes (textural and microstructural
should be based on established specifications, criteria and method- characteristics) [7]. The DIP’s texture analysis can be validated by
ology involving scientific support. Decision making should concern porosimetric data and microscopic textural investigation with
the selection of compatible conservation materials and interven- scanning electron microscopy [3,8].
tions, evaluation of their lifetime performance, the assessment of The ability of DIP to provide detailed materials mapping for the
their socio-economic impact and sustainability considerations. To evaluation of conservation interventions compatibility, is pre-
this end, effective built cultural heritage protection requires sented in Fig. 1. In particular, incompatible restoration materials,
knowledge of the building’s structure and materials, an integrated hard carbonate and biogenic crust, partial replacement by new
diagnostic study, and assessment of the performance of conserva- incompatible building stones are shown in Fig. 1a and a’. The alve-
tion materials and interventions. olar disease varying from disintegration to pitting, cavities, inter-
An integrated diagnostic study includes historic documentation, connected cavities and full face caves can be distinguished and
characterisation of the historic materials and study of their prove- quantified in Fig. 1b and b’ [3,8,9].
nance, evaluation of previous interventions and assessment of the
environmental impact [1]. It further involves monitoring of the act- 2.2. Infrared Thermography (IRT)
ing environmental factors, in situ macroscopic observations for the
materials’ preservation state and structure’s pathology, in situ de- Infrared Thermography (IRT) is an established non-destructive
cay mapping with the aid of NDT, in-lab study of the decay prod- and evaluation technique with a wide array of applications ranging
ucts and mechanisms, and correlation of intrinsic and extrinsic from enhancing night vision to detecting defects on architectural
factors on the monument scale. The identification of the problem surfaces [10]. In the field of built cultural heritage, in particular,
is then followed by application of pilot conservation interventions IRT is a valuable NDT for the investigation of structures, their
and their assessment, in which NDT are specifically utilised in building materials and their preservation state, as it offers the
quality control of conservation materials, and assessment of their advantages of investigating without the need for sampling and of
performance in lab and in situ. Both functions (decay diagnosis being able to examine large areas. The basic principle of the tech-
and assessment of pilot conservation interventions) provide essen- nique is that, since all objects above the absolute zero temperature
tial scientific support to decision making regarding monument’s (0 K) emit infrared radiation, it is possible to detect and map ther-
protection. mal variations and correlate these to variations of the materials’
This work focuses on the use of Digital Image Processing (DIP), properties, microstructure and surface morphology. Thermal vari-
Infrared Thermography (IRT), Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), ations are measured with the aid of infrared cameras operating
Ultrasonic (US) testing and Fibre Optic Microscopy (FOM) for the at the mid (3–5 lm) and long (7–14 lm) wave infrared bands, cor-
diagnosis of decay and assessment of conservation interventions, responding to two of the high transmittance infrared windows of
and how these NDT results are interrelated with Computer Aided the atmosphere [11] and an image of the investigated area is ren-
Design (CAD) and Geographical Information Systems (GISs) in or- dered in colour, corresponding to a temperature scale.
der to support strategic planning of the conservation interventions Two approaches in IRT investigations are employed in the field
on monument scale and environmental impact assessment for the of cultural heritage protection [11–14]. Passive thermography is
protection, management and sustainable development of built cul- used when the features of interest are naturally at a different tem-
tural heritage. perature than the background. The passive approach is commonly
used for the inspection of architectural surfaces, where the materi-
als under investigation are usually examined in terms of qualita-
tive means (detection of discontinuities/interfaces, defects, voids,
2. Results and discussion etc.). Instead, when the features of interest are in thermal equilib-
rium with the surroundings, and thus difficult to differentiate, ac-
Conservation and protection of built cultural heritage involves tive thermography is employed, where an energy source is utilised
many processes and materials [2]. Non-destructive testing and to produce a thermal contrast (heating or cooling) between the fea-
evaluation techniques, such as Digital Image Processing (DIP), ture of interest and the background [11,12]. In this case, it is also
Infrared Thermography (IR-Thermo), Ground Penetrating Radar possible to attain quantitative results, because the heating or cool-
(GPR), Ultrasonic (US) testing and Fibre Optic Microscopy ing features of the excitation source are specified in time and
(FOM) offer certain unique capabilities in a variety of amplitude. In ‘‘Pulsed Thermography’’ (PT) the specimen is heated
applications. Representative results are given in the following briefly and then the temperature falling curve is recorded by an IR
sections. camera. In ‘‘Lock-in Thermography’’ (LT) wave generation is per-
1224 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 1. Digital images processing at the medieval fortifications of Rhodes [3,8].

formed by periodic deposition of heat on the inspected area heat capacity and thermal conductivity are also affected and so
through sine-modulated lamp heating, the resulting oscillating any temperature changes are much slower in a moist area
temperature field in the stationary regime being recorded remotely [13,16,17]. Moreover, the knowledge of materials emissivity is cru-
through thermal infrared emission. Lock-in thermography is based cial and many studies on the emissivity of structural materials
on the monitoring of the exact time dependence between the re- have been conducted [18,19]. In practice, IRT is very useful in the
corded temperature signal and the reference signal. The depth of evaluation of the performance of various conservations interven-
IR images is inversely proportional to the modulation frequency, tions (such as application of restoration materials, cleaning, and
so that higher modulation frequencies restrict the analysis in a consolidation), also the assessment of the preservation state of his-
near surface region [15]. Passive approach is usually employed toric masonries (detection of residual moisture), and study of
when surveying large areas, e.g. masonries, whereas active ap- architectural surfaces of artistic value (such as mosaics).
proach is employed when surveying small areas of interest (e.g.
investigation of specimens in lab, or small mosaic areas) where 2.2.1. Evaluation of restoration materials on the monument scale
the controlled thermal excitation is feasible. As mentioned above, IRT is widely used to evaluate the perfor-
Furthermore, there are various physical properties that need to mance of restoration materials, on the monument scale, due to its
be considered during an IRT survey of a structure [13]. These in- ability to survey large areas, compared to other NDT [13,20]. An
clude the materials’ spectral properties (emissivity, absorption, example of such an application is the thermographic survey on
reflection, and transmission), its thermal properties (conductivity, the fortification masonry facing the National Stadium of Heraklion,
diffusivity, effusivity, and specific heat) and other properties such Crete. The use of cement binding mortars on historic structures has
as porosity, volumetric mass, physical-bounded water content. been causing compatibility problems to the authentic materials of
These are essential in ‘‘interpreting’’ the thermographs obtained a historic structure [21]. From a previous work, where several ma-
in IRT surveys; however, they are not always available for historic sonry sandwich-type specimens consisting of two porous stones
building materials. For instance, a material with voids or pores, de- bound by a restoration mortar (lime or hydraulic lime or cement)
creases its thermal conductivity and density, its thermal diffusivity were examined in the laboratory, it was proved that cement mor-
is altered and so the conduction of heat transfer within the mate- tars present physicochemical incompatibility to materials such as
rial is affected [13]. Also, when the investigated material contains limestones and lime mortars [22]. This was also verified in situ,
moisture, its optical properties are altered, the density, specific where the obtained thermal image presented in Fig. 2 shows a dif-

Fig. 2. Left: Fortification masonry facing the National Stadium of Heraklion in Crete; Right: infrared thermograph of the same masonry.
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1225

sepiolite residues (not properly removed from the porous stone

surface) which withhold moisture. In contrast, at the right part of
the thermal image, cleaning was effectively accomplished using
the water blasting method. Since the specific heat of water is
approximately five times greater than marble or porous stone, this
would mean that any changes in temperature would be much
slower in an area contaminated by water. Thus, the areas affected
by water present lower temperatures and can be detected by IRT.

2.2.3. Evaluation of consolidation interventions on architectural

surfaces
The use of IRT for evaluation of consolidation interventions is
based on the fact that the spectral and thermal properties of the
building materials change with the addition of consolidants, thus
resulting in surface temperature variations depending on the type
and penetration depth of the consolidation treatment [17]. Pilot-
scale laboratory applications of consolidants and their evaluation
Fig. 3. Infrared thermal image of Kapandriti porous stone surface at the historic
with IRT and other analytical and non-destructive techniques, are
building of the Bank of Greece, in Athens. Two cleaning methods were applied;
water blasting method (right part of thermal image) or sepiolite poultice of (NH4)2- valuable in interpreting the thermal images obtained in situ [17].
CO3 15% w/v solution (left part of thermal image) [26]. An application of IRT for the evaluation of consolidation inter-
ventions on architectural surfaces is shown in Fig. 4. This masonry,
at St. Paul’s gate in the Medieval City of Rhodes, is close to the sea
ferent behaviour of the joint mortar; cold building stones and hot and south oriented, thus the backside of this masonry is continu-
joint mortars. This is due to the historic mortars attaining similar ously fed by salt solution. The consolidation interventions was per-
temperatures to those of the stones, whereas, cement restoration formed in 1997, using silicon-based materials (RP: Ethyl silicate –
mortars attain much higher temperatures, due to their imperme- Rhodorsil RC 70; EU: Acryl siliconic resin – ACS 2001; PH: Prehy-
ability to salt solutions [23]. A microstructural investigation [24] drolysed ethyl silicate with amorphous silica-Silbond HT20; PL:
validated the in situ IRT survey by revealing that the cement mor- Aqueous colloidal dispersion of silica particles – Ludox HS30), since
tars have different porosity values and pore size distributions com- they present good compatibility with the stone, chemical stability
pared to the historic mortars, causing differential heat and mass owing to the Si–O–Si bond, preventing discolouration. RP and EU
transfer, among the porous materials within the examined present relatively higher temperatures when compared to the
masonry. treatments with PH and PL. This is probably due to the fact that
the first two treatments alter the physicochemical characteristics
of the stones, whereas, PH and PL treatments present better phys-
2.2.2. Evaluation of cleaning interventions on architectural surfaces
icochemical compatibility to the original non-treated stone.
IRT is also used with other NDT to evaluate, in situ, cleaning
interventions on architectural surfaces [25]. Such an application
is the evaluation of the efficiency of cleaning treatments on certain 2.2.4. Study of moisture transfer phenomena
architectural surfaces of different materials and decay patterns at IRT is used for the detection of moisture and rising damp in his-
the Bank of Greece historic building in Athens [26]. The cleaning toric buildings and masonry structures [16,20,21]. Such an applica-
methods applied on a porous stone surface (Kapandriti stone) were tion is the investigation of the National Bank of Greece historic
a water blasting method under controlled pressure (right part of building in Nafplio, Fig. 5, where an IRT survey provided tempera-
Fig. 3) or a sepiolite poultice of (NH4)2CO3 15% w/v solution (left ture values and their distribution on the examined architectural
part of Fig. 3). The thermograph reveals that on the left part of surfaces, by the rendering of different colours [27]. The investiga-
the surface, there exist indication of moisture (indicated with tion revealed that the beige painted lime plaster presents interme-
low temperatures on the thermal image) due to the presence of diate to low temperature values (A1–B1) [28]. This is attributed to

Fig. 4. (Left) Consolidated masonry at St. Paul’s gate, Medieval City of Rhodes, see text for consolidants. (Right) Thermal images of the same masonry after 3, 15, 28 and
33 months.
1226 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 5. Historic building in Nafplio: (Left) photograph of the examined area; (Right) infrared thermograph of the same area. (A1–B1) beige painted plaster, (A2–B2) new
lightbeige painted plaster, (A3–B3) dark brown painted hammered textured plaster. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred
to the web version of this article.)

moisture withholding, deriving from the acrylic putty application between the 19th and the 20th rib at the northwest part of the
(a cement based material rich in organic components), that inhibits dome, 16 m from the centre of the dome [30,32,33] Fig. 7a depicts
the respiration behaviour of the lime-plastered surfaces by con- the examined surface, and Fig. 7b thermal images from the same
straining its water movement and vapour permeability [17]. The surface. The thermograph reveals the existence of a coated mosaic,
respiration behaviour among cement, organic and lime-based as well as detached areas within it. Darker grey areas—lower tem-
materials varies because of the differences noticed not only in their perature values—represent the mosaic, whereas, the detached
chemical and mineralogical composition but also in their micro- areas, behaving similarly to a sub-surface defect, present higher
structure (i.e. total porosity, pore size distribution, pore radius) temperature values, due to their different thermal diffusion rate
[13,17]. Thus, there is different permeability among such materials (thermal contrast).
leading to physicochemical incompatibility [13]. The new light
beige painted cement plaster, demonstrates the lowest tempera- 2.3. Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR)
ture readings (A2–B2), since cement materials are hydrophilic,
withholding moisture. The hammered plaster high temperatures Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is an established non-destruc-
(A3–B3) appear not only due to the plaster’s surfacial relief, but tive technique [34,35] that uses radar pulses to image the exam-
also because the plaster’s moisture evaporation rate is not inhib- ined sub-surface. It uses electromagnetic radiation (typically
ited, as no acrylic putty was applied [28]. In order to validate IR- 100 MHz to 2.6 GHz for built cultural heritage applications) detect-
Thermo, different types of simulating masonry prototypes are ing the reflected signals from sub-surface structures as the diffus-
monitored by the technique in lab during water absorption curves ing pulse meets boundaries with different dielectric constants. GPR
(capillary) and/or evaporation phenomena [13]. is commonly used in Earth Sciences (with even lower frequency
antennae) to provide information about the rock and sediment
2.2.5. Examination of mosaics structure of ground, in transportation to identify the layering of
IRT is used for the assessment of the preservation state of mosa- substructures in roads and railways, and in Civil Engineering to
ics and to reveal substrate features such as plastered mosaics or present information about the interior of load bearing elements
sub-surface murals [12,29–31]. Such an application took place in of concrete buildings and structures (e.g. bridges, tunnels, etc.) or
Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, a church decorated with mosaics dating to detect and map buried utilities.
back to the 6th century. Throughout its history, the building has In the field of cultural heritage protection, GPR is increasingly
been damaged by earthquakes, vandalism, and has been the sub- used in archaeology [36] to detect buried structures [36–39] – usu-
ject of various interventions. Many mosaic areas that survived ally in conjunction with other geophysical methods (magnetic, soil
through the centuries were plastered during the use of church as resistance and electromagnetic surveys) – and in the assessment of
a Mosque. Since the conversion of Hagia Sophia into a museum, the preservation state of monuments and historic structures. In the
1935, the conservation of the remaining non-covered mosaics latter application, GPR is utilised to locate the position of large
has begun, including mosaics that have been revealed from areas voids and inclusions of different materials [40], to qualify the state
where the plaster was removed during the conservation process of preservation of the structural system [41,42], to define the pres-
of the monument. ence and the level of moisture [40], to control the effectiveness of
The ability of IRT to reveal plastered mosaics has been demon- repair interventions [40], and to reveal the morphology/geometry
strated in previous research work, where various types of mosaics of wall sections in multiple-leaf stone and brick masonry struc-
were investigated in the laboratory using IRT, to reveal the mosaic– tures [40,41,43].
tesserae beneath the plastered surfaces [29]. Active IRT was em- The penetration depth of GPR depends largely on the material
ployed, with optical lamps providing the heat, and during the cool- investigated and the frequency of the antenna used; for a given
ing down process the thermal image was obtained. This is feasible, material, lower antenna frequencies increase penetration depth
due to the different thermal diffusion each layer presents (Fig. 6), but resolution is decreased. The use of high-resolution high-fre-
enabling active-IRT to detect the different sub-surfaces on the plas- quency antennae does not pose any significant limitations in the
tered mosaics, corresponding to the temperature variations ob- use of the technique on historic buildings and structures, as most
served on the surface. features of interest are within the methods’ penetration depth. Like
In-situ, a plastered mosaic surface, characteristic of Vakif all NDT, care should be taken in ‘‘interpreting’’ the results obtained,
intervention, in the Hagia Sophia dome was investigated, situated and it is very important that the technique is used in conjunction
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1227

Fig. 6. Demonstration of detection of sub-surface mosaic layer with the use of active IRT. Top – Blank (Lime putty/brick powder/quarry sand: 2/1.5/3); bottom: mosaic with
gold and enamel with two renderings of lime mortar (L/S: 1/1) [29].

Fig. 7. (a) Left: investigated plastered mosaic area – vakif intervention. (b) Right: thermal images from the same surface revealing the presence of coated mosaic, detachment
or absence of tesserae and metallic support pins.

with other analytical or non-destructive techniques for careful 2.3.1. Assessment of the preservation state of the structural system
elaboration of the collected data and for successful assessment Based on experience gained from civil engineering applications,
and diagnosis of the structural problems associated with historic GPR is increasingly used in assessing the decay state of historic
buildings. State-of-the-art processing software can improve the buildings and structures, due to its ability to provide an ‘‘image’’
raw data obtained and give GPR a 3-D imaging capability. In con- of the examined sub-surface. However, the lack of knowledge
trast to typical civil engineering applications (e.g. reinforced con- regarding the structural characteristics of the monument (con-
crete structures), this is even more crucial in the field of built struction techniques, detailed architecture of all phases, etc.) and
cultural heritage protection, since structural information is often the materials involved (historic materials, restoration materials
very limited and the historic materials’ properties (dielectric con- and interventions, decay of materials, etc.) often make identifica-
stant, etc.) are largely unknown and greatly varying. tion of the observed features in a radargram a difficult task.
1228 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 8. (Upper left) External view of the examined south-west masonry of the Dome of the Catholic, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, with indication of the position of the GPR
scan and the structural cracks T1 and T2. (Lower left) Interior view of the back side of the examined area. (Right) GPR scan (MALÅ ProEx system with 1.6 GHz antenna and
Groundvision 2 software) with overlay of the interpretation of the interior structure of the masonry at the level of the scan. T1 and T2 are covering the whole thickness of the
respective ashlars [44,45].

Fig. 9. GPR scan at a revealed mosaic area at Hagia Sophia, south upper gallery, intersection of two arches [30]. Target denoted with dashed white curve corresponds to an
internal space possibly filled with mortars and bricks (2.3 GHz antenna).

Fig. 8 shows the typical results obtained by processing data a preliminary diagnostic study of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,
from a GPR survey on a historic masonry. In particular, as part of NDT were cooperatively applied in order to determine and map
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1229

Fig. 10. Top row: Location of GPR scans A21–A25 over area situated between two windows at the south upper gallery. Part of the plaster layer has been removed revealing
the underlying mosaic. Damage to the plaster and the mosaic is observed at the lower part of the area due to humidity problem; second row GPR scans (1.6 GHz) A21
(1.09 m), A22 (1.03 m); third row: scans A23 (0.47 m), A24 (0.60 m), A25 (0.55 m); lower: proposed areas around the revealed mosaic where the presence of void spaces
below the plastered mosaic layer has been identified by ground penetrating radar.

incompatible materials used for the monument’s conservation and ashlars row, two cracks T1 and T2 (Fig. 8) were observed exter-
structural maintenance interventions [44,45]. Fig. 8 shows the nally, filled with grout material during prior conservation interven-
radargram of a scan over the exterior south-west masonry of the tion. GPR was employed to assess whether these cracks are shallow
Dome of the Catholic, overlaid with an interpretation of the interior or penetrate the whole thickness of the respective ashlars; Fig. 8
and exterior structure of the examined masonry. In this particular indicates that both cracks are indeed penetrating the complete
1230 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 11. Estimation of consolidation effectiveness of porous stones: (top left) untreated stone; (top right-EU) stone treated with acryl siliconic resin; (lower left-PL) stone
treated with aqueous colloidal dispersion of silica particles; (lower right-RP) stone treated with ethyl silicate [55].

Fig. 12. FOM (50) at Sarantapicho, Rhodes. Left: lichen with carpic structure. Middle: interface of lichen-stone. Right: interior of grey limestone [66].

thickness of the ashlars. It also shows the position of the internal In another area, located between windows at the south ma-
filler layer, between the external and the internal layers of sonry of the south upper gallery, part of the plaster has been re-
ashlars. The pulse even penetrates the complete thickness of the moved, revealing the underlying mosaic. External damage to the
masonry and detects, from the outside, the circular dome support plaster and the mosaic is observed at the lower part of the area
columns. due to moisture problems. A systematic GPR survey revealed the
presence of an underlying mosaic layer, beyond the portion that
2.3.2. Assessment of the preservation state of mosaics has been revealed by the removal of the plaster, but it also revealed
GPR is used for the assessment of the preservation state of void spaces below this mosaic layer that need attention if it is
mosaics and to reveal substrate features such as plastered mosaics decided, in the future, to reveal a larger portion of the mosaic. After
or sub-surface murals [30,31,33,46,47]. In Hagia Sophia’s mosaics, correlation of the positions of these void spaces in the respective
for example, at the south upper gallery, GPR was employed in an horizontal and vertical scans, a ‘‘map’’ of their position was pro-
area at the perpendicular intersection of two arches (a north east posed and indicated as the grey areas in Fig. 10.
bracing arch) which includes recently revealed ornamental mosaic
areas, exposed brick structure and exposed stone structure. Fig 9 2.4. Ultrasonic testing
shows the corresponding GPR radargram with indication of a tar-
get [30]. This target corresponds to the space created at the per- Ultrasonic testing (US) is an established non-destructive meth-
pendicular intersection of the left arch (stone structure) with the od that detects surface and sub-surface flaws or discontinuities in
right arch (outer brick structure sub-area C). This space is possibly materials [48,49]. High-frequency sound waves are introduced into
filled with mortar and bricks, and thus, care should be taken at this the examined surface which travel through the material with some
junction area regarding the cohesion of the preserved mosaic with attendant loss of energy (attenuation) and are reflected at any
its support mortar and the structure. interfaces encountered. The reflected beam is then detected on
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1231

Fig. 13. FOM (50) at Erimokastro. Left: surfacial cracks on the dark-brown inclusion. Middle: Lichen on the off-white limestone. Right: carpic structure at the off-white
limestone [66]. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

Fig. 14. Evaluation of cleaning interventions with FOM (25), Athens Academy historic building [60]. (Top row) Black–grey crust on pentelic marble surface (top right),
before cleaning (top left), and after cleaning (top middle). (Lower row) Black organic depositions on pentelic marble surface (lower right), before cleaning (lower left) and
after cleaning (lower middle).

Fig. 15. Evaluation of consolidation interventions with FOM (50), Medieval City of Rhodes. Comparative microstructures of untreated porous stone (left), porous stone
treated with a prehydrolyzed ethyl silicate with amorphous silica (middle), and porous stone treated with an aqueous colloidal dispersion of silica particles (right) [8,55].

the surface and analysed to determine the presence and location of where Vt and Vl are the transverse and longitudinal ultrasound
flaws or discontinuities. It is commonly used in transportation and waves propagation velocities respectively. However, although the
construction sectors, mainly to identify flaws (cracks, inclusions, above equation seems to work well with typical modern building
etc.) in materials. materials like concrete, and even a correlation existing between
In the field of built cultural heritage protection, ultrasonic test- the dynamic elastic constants and those obtained by mechanical
ing can provide, non-destructively, the elastic properties of historic tests, there are experimental difficulties (e.g. rough surface finish,
building materials [50–52]. In particular, the elastic constants loss of coherence, and weathered surface) in measuring in situ,
parameters (dynamic modulus of elasticity, Ed, Poisson ratio, md, weathered historic materials, often of unknown microstructure
and Gd) are calculated by the following equations, using the ultra- and composition. As the ultrasonic wave propagation velocity can
sonic velocity values: be correlated with some of the materials microstructure parameters
 2  2 [50,51], and since decay directly affects the microstructure of mate-
3 Vt 1 Vt
4
 Vl 2
 Vl rials, ultrasonic testing is often used to assess their decay state.
2
Ed ¼ 4  q  m 
t  2 md ¼  2 Gd ¼ q  V 2t ð1Þ Furthermore, US can determine the depth of the decayed layer
Vt Vt
1 Vl
1 Vl within a material, which is evaluated using the indirect ultrasonic
1232 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 16. FOM images, Hagia Sophia mosaics, south gallery-north east bracing arch [64]. (1) Ornamental mosaic, blue tessera, (50). (2) Ornamental mosaic, blue tessera,
(120). (3) Ornamental mosaic, gold tessera, (120). (4) Ornamental mosaic, green tessera, (120). (5) Ornamental mosaic, red tessera, (120). (6) Ornamental mosaic, gold
tessera, (120). (7) Ornamental mosaic, dark green tesserae, (50). (8) Ornamental mosaic, red tessera, (50). (9) Bedding mortar, ornamental mosaic, (50). (For
interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

Table 1 rock. This layer of inferior quality could arise as a result of weath-
Building materials of at the north façade of the Mela Palace [67]. ering [53,54]. The thickness, D, of the weathered surface layer is
estimated as follows:
Legend Description
sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
1 Masonry plaster – finish: lime binder with low proportion of white
Xo VS  VD
cement, calcareous aggregates with traces of dolomite admixtures. D¼ ð2Þ
Second layer: binder of grey cement with lime, calcareous 2 VS þ VD
aggregates with traces of dolomite admixtures
2 Decorative stuccos – geison, buniato, pilaster, pediment and where VS, VD, are the ultrasonic velocities in the healthy and dam-
archivolts: cement binder with lime, calcareous aggregates with aged part of the stone respectively and Xo the distance between
admixtures of aluminosilicates
the transducers where a change in slope of the distance–time curve
3 Balusters: binder of white cement rich in calcium aluminates,
calcareous aggregates is observed.
4 Dentils – capitals: white cement binder with low proportion of lime Ultrasonic testing is also used to assess of cohesion enhancement
– quartz aggregates with lower proportion of calcite which present by estimation of the penetration depth of consolidation materials.
dolomite Fig. 11 presents the US evaluation on untreated and consolidated
5 Decorative elements: Hermes-Caryatid body, keystone, and flower
specimens of the porous stone of medieval city of Rhodes [53,55].
pot - white finish: lime binder with fibre reinforced cement. Second
layer: binder of grey cement with lime, calcareous aggregates with Untreated specimens (upper left) indicate a weathered layer, corre-
dolomite admixtures sponding to the change of slopes (velocities) of the weathered and
6 Hermes-Caryatid base: binder of white cement with low proportion non-weathered areas and can be calculated by the above equation.
of lime – calcareous aggregates
In the other three plots, the velocities of the treated areas are all
7 Smooth grey marble facings: homogeneous and coarse grained
marble
higher than the untreated ones, indicating a clear consolidation ef-
8 Grey marble facings of hammered finish: homogeneous and coarse fect; RP shows the highest consolidation enhancement. The reflec-
grained marble tion phenomena observed in EU and PL are responsible for the fact
9 Smooth white marble facings: calcitic medium grained marble with that the interior of the stone (untreated) presents similar to the con-
thin zones of fine grained calcite
solidated areas slopes. US can be validated in lab by elasticity mod-
10 Roof chamber grating: reinforced concrete
11 Tile roof ulus measurements and porosimetric data.

2.5. Fibre Optics Microscopy (FOM)

velocity technique. In this case the transmitter is placed on a suit-
able point of the surface and the receiver is placed on the same sur- A Fibre Optics Microscope (FOM) is a non-destructive micro-
face at successive positions along a specific line. The transit time is scope that can be utilised in situ to acquire magnified, visible spec-
plotted in relation to the distance between the centres of the trans- trum, images. FOM is a microscope system integrating advanced
ducers. A change of slope in the plot indicates that the pulse veloc- optics, fibre optics and digital components. Whereas in traditional
ity near the surface is much lower than it is deeper down in the optical microscopy a sample is required to be placed at the micro-
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1233

Fig. 17. Photo of Mela Palace; CAD Mapping of building materials (north façade) [67].

Table 2 surfaces of the stones. There exists a large variety of biodegrada-

Decay patterns at the north façade of the Mela Palace [67]. tion factors present on the stones. Superficial microcracks are ob-
served on the dark-brown inclusions of the grey limestone (lime-
Legend Description
rich hornstone), whereas the roughness of the off-white porous
Plastered surfaces stone is increased, often accompanied with superficial cracks.
1 Intense black depositions and dust fall
2 Blackish depositions and dust fall
FOM investigations on pentelic marble surfaces of the historic
3 Washed out surfaces building of Athens Academy, Greece (Fig. 14), demonstrates the
4 Firm painting ability of FOM to study the surface morphology before and after
Marble surfaces a cleaning intervention (wet micro-blasting method), by indicating
5 Black crust the cleaning method’s abrasive levels or its selectivity [60]. The
6 Saccharoidal decay first row of images presents a black–grey crust, which is mainly
7 Black depositions and dust fall
consisted of gypsum, reprecipitated calcite, and soot. This thin
8 Washed out surfaces
9 Cracks rather cohesive layer that was removed by the cleaning interven-
10 Graffiti tion, disclosed a sound fine-grained marble surface, demonstrating
acceptable abrasion levels of the cleaning process. The second row
of images presents the decay pattern of black organic depositions,
mainly consisted of reprecipitated calcite, organic compounds, soot
scope, with FOM, no sampling is required and the image can be ac- and small amounts of silico-alluminates (dust-fall). Most of the
quired in situ. High resolution, high contrast magnified (up to superficial depositions were removed by cleaning, but the revealed
600) images of the surface can be obtained and stored digitally surface presented intense intergranural fissures whose boundaries
for further processing (e.g. DIP), by selecting and attaching the emerged because of the remaining adsorpted organic depositions.
appropriate magnification optics (e.g. 25, 50, 100, 200). This observation indicates that marble fatigue due to cyclic com-
In the field of cultural heritage protection, FOM is employed to pression and expansion (environmental conditions), was enhanced
identify differences in the texture and composition of surfaces, for due to the acid attack of air pollutants, and led to adsorption
materials classification (e.g. classifications of mortars), for the mainly of organic compounds. Moreover, it is obvious that the used
study of the decay phenomena (alveolation, hard carbonate crust, cleaning method is not a selective one, since an additional applica-
etc.) [56], to investigate materials’ surface morphology [57,58], to tion of a selective cleaning method is required.
identify defects in historic building materials [58], for materials Fig. 15 depicts the microstructure of a porous stone after a con-
characterisation [55], to classify decay typologies for porous stones solidation treatment, providing information concerning micro-
[9], to evaluate cleaning interventions [59,60], consolidation inter- structural modifications in porous materials, as well as the
ventions [61,62] and incompatible interventions, and to study the deposition mechanism of the applied materials [55]. Fig. 16 dem-
preservation state of mosaics [63,64] Furthermore, FOM, can be onstrates the use of FOM to study the preservation state of mosaics
used in combination with DIP and morphological fusion algorithms of Hagia Sophia, Istanbul [64]. In the examined mosaic area of a
to detect and quantify decay patterns on building materials [4,65]. south gallery-north east bracing arch, the major decay patterns
Fig. 12 shows in situ microstructural observations at Sarantap- presented on the glass tesserae (metallic and coloured) of the
icho [66], where the presence of extensive biological decay with li- investigated mosaic surface, can be summarised as follows: pitting
chens main body (thallus) of white grey colour and fruiting bodies (Fig. 16.1 and 16.8), dulling (Fig. 16.3 and 16.6), lamination and iri-
leading to colour alterations of the stone and the development of descence (Fig. 16.7 and 16.8), salt efflorescence (Fig. 16.4 and 16.5),
superficial microcracks and microcavities are identified. At the grey crusts and fibrils of biogenic origin (Fig. 16.7), off-white col-
interior of the stone, a light orange1 hue is observed. oured crusts (Fig. 16.2) and micro-cracking and crizzling
Fig. 13 shows FOM observations at Erimokastro, Rhodes [66], (Fig. 16.3). Moreover, gold leaves in the gold tesserae presented
where colour and morphological alterations are observed at the in most of the examined cases extended fracturing (Fig. 16.3 and
16.6). Finally, the FOM examination of setting bed demonstrated
1
For interpretation of color in Figs. 12, 18, and 22, the reader is referred to the web that straws were used for its construction, as well as that a pro-
version of this article. jected part of straw is biodeteriorated (Fig. 16.9).
1234 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 18. CAD Mapping of decay patterns at the Mela Palace (north façade) [67].

Fig. 19. Decay mapping through NDT data management at the Mela Palace. (Left) Environmental impact assessment through management of DIP images, west façade; (Right)
environmental impact assessment through management of infrared thermographs, east façade [67].

Fig. 20. CAD Mapping of conservation interventions at the Mela Palace (north façade) [67].

3. Planning of conservation interventions, using integrated plexes’ scale, can perform conservation interventions planning and
information systems environmental management of historic cities for their preservation
and sustainable development.
Historic buildings and sites of high cultural significance can be
environmentally managed, conserved, maintained and reassigned 3.1. Planning of conservation interventions on building scale
into urban planning when innovative planning tools like integrated
information systems are supplied with advanced scientific results, The architectural drawings of the façades of the Mela Palace his-
like NDT data. In this framework, materials data, data regarding toric building were created in CAD [67]. These drawings function as
environmental impact and damage assessment, as well as data of the base map, where mapping of building materials and mapping
conservation materials and interventions assessment, are interre- of decay patterns take place, based on all the acquired NDT and
lated with architectural and land use data. The combined use of analytical techniques results, as well as on architectural data.
the above tools and methodology on buildings’ scale and on com- Therefore, the materials of the façades (see Table 1) can be dis-
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1235

Table 3 Accordingly, the IR Thermo image (Fig. 19) shows two distinct
Conservation interventions at the north façade of the Mela Palace [67]. areas, one with lower temperatures varying from 22.5 °C to
Legend Description approximately 30 °C (corresponding to the areas of decorative
Plastered surfaces plasters) and a second one from 30 °C to approximately 36 °C (cor-
1 Removal of plaster’s external paint: wet micro-blasting method of responding to the areas of the masonry plasters); the temperature
2.5 bar max pressure, spherical particles of CaCO3 70 < d < 200 lm, range from approximately 36 °C to 50 °C corresponds to the win-
proportion of CaCO3/water: 1/2; repainting: siloxane-based paint dow panel. This temperature difference can be attributed to the
2 Filling cracks: injection of acrylic–methacrylic emulsion
3 Anti-graffiti protection up to 2.00 m height: co-polymer of
different chemical composition (higher cement proportion in the
vinylidene fluoride and hexafluoropropene in volatile organic solver binder) of the decorative plasters as compared to that of the ma-
– four applications sonry plaster, and possibly to different moisture contents [28].
4 Placing bird spikes Finally, management of the mapping results can support deci-
5 Placing water scuppers
sively the planning of conservation interventions on building scale
Marble surfaces in real terms, through the calculation of each layer area (m2) which
6 Cleaning: water blasting method of 2 bar max pressure
represent a particular building material and/or a decay pattern.
7 Cleaning: wet micro-blasting method of 1.5 bar max pressure,
spherical particles of CaCO3, d < 80 lm, proportion of CaCO3/water: This results in the environmental impact assessment in terms of
1/3 quantification, as the comparison of each building material and de-
8 Graffiti cleaning: paper-pulp and acetone cay pattern extent with the orientation of the building façades is
9 Anti-graffiti protection up to 2.00 m height: co-polymer of possible. Additionally, mapping of the suggested conservation
vinylidene fluoride and hexafluoropropene in volatile organic solver
interventions on CAD (a process which is based on the materials
– two applications
10 Filling cracks: injection of acrylic–methacrylic emulsion and finish and decay data), can lead to efficient cost analysis and specifica-
application using elastomer with calcareous aggregates of tions for the application of the proposed conservation interven-
d < 250 lm tions. Fig. 20 presents the exact areas of the conservation
interventions that are to be applied at the north façade of the
building, (see Table 3) [67].
played on screen with different colours, classified according to
their architectural description and physical–chemical characteris-
tics (Fig. 17). Similarly, each decay pattern (see Table 2) is repre- 3.2. Preservation planning as a tool for a sustainable historic city
sented by a different layer and displayed by a different colour
(Fig. 18) [27,67]. A Geographical Information System (GIS) can be used to
The advantage of the use of integrated information systems is manage a multidisciplinary database, including environmental,
that environmental impact assessment can be achieved more effi- functional, materials and structural data [56]. Integrated environ-
ciently through the management of NDT data. These drawings mental planning and management can be accomplished by the
function as the base map, where all the acquired non-destructive analysis of all the relevant data with the objective of eliminating
data can be recalled, since they are stored in a database. This inte- the negative impact of the natural and artificial (man-made) envi-
grated information system can be activated presenting all the ronment on historic fortifications, with the purpose of preventing
available data of the investigated areas on screen [28]. For exam- additional damage and preserving an appropriate conservation le-
ple, several pseudo colours (in a colour mode) or shades of grey vel, whilst the historic site is revitalised in the course of further
(in black and white format) through DIP images attribute the dis- treatments – uses and its role is reinforced. Finally, integrated
played decay patterns, whereas the IR Thermo images record the management in terms of preservation of historic sites is realised
temperature distribution of the investigated surfaces (Fig. 19) as intervention on materials and structures, urban planning and
[27]. In particular, the DIP image presents the painted plaster sur- environmental management to eliminate environmental loads, as
faces of the west façade, displaying with different shades of grey well as development and rehabilitation of sites and buildings by
the dust fall and black depositions area, the washed out surfaces, introducing new uses (cultural and recreational activities and tour-
the blackish depositions and the firm painting [28]. ism) [56].

Fig. 21. (Left) Environmental impact assessment of the main air pollutants on Venetian Fortifications of Heraklion using GIS. (Right) Environmental impact assessment
regarding soluble anions concentrations (Cl, NO3, SO2
4 ), on Venetian Fortifications of Heraklion using GIS.
1236 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239

Fig. 22. Environmental impact assessment and environmental management and valuation of uses by GIS for the Venetian Fortifications of Heraklion.

Fig. 23. Infrared thermographs managed by GIS for the environmental impact assessment and related management regarding the planning of underground networks in the
medieval city of Rhodes [8,56,70,71].

3.2.1. Historic city centre of Heraklion within the Venetian More specifically, comparison among anions’ concentrations
Fortifications along the fortifications’ investigation sites, shows that the higher
The GIS management of main air pollutants concentrations (CO, concentration values of Cl, are located at sea view areas, as well
O3, NO, NO2, SO2, Fig. 21), on Venetian Fortifications of Heraklion as at areas which are subjected to northwest winds (i.e. St. An-
for the years of 1997–1999, along with the results of soluble anions drews investigation area), indicating that the main source of this
concentrations (Cl, NO3, SO2 4 , Fig. 21) in monument samples al- environmental load is salt spray (designated by light blue coloured
lows the environmental impact assessment, as well as contributing spatial entities in GIS map, Fig. 22). Accordingly, high concentra-
to the environmental management and evaluation of uses for the tion values of NO3 and SO24 , are located to high traffic areas like
historic centre of Heraklion city, (Fig. 22) [68,69]. the OANAK investigation area, demonstrating that the urban road
 A. Moropoulou et al. / Construction and Building Materials 48 (2013) 1222–1239 1237

Fig. 24. Environmental impact assessment and environmental management and valuation of uses by GIS for the medieval city of Rhodes [8,56,70,71].

network is the main pollution source (designated by the red col- faces of built cultural heritage for (a) materials quality control, (b)
oured spatial entities in GIS map, Fig. 22). environmental impact assessment – materials and weathering
Therefore, the historic centre of Heraklion within the Venetian mapping, (c) evaluation of conservation materials compatibility
Fortifications, require for its preservation, integrated environmen- and conservation interventions effectiveness on the scale of archi-
tal management within urban and land use planning of the city, as tectural surfaces and historic masonries, (d) strategic planning for
Fig. 22 demonstrate. the conservation interventions, and (e) environmental manage-
ment for the protection of built cultural heritage. The use of inno-
vative non-destructive techniques, validated in lab, and the
3.2.2. Medieval city intra muros of Rhodes
acquired advanced scientific results, when integrated into tools
In the case of the medieval city intra muros of Rhodes, infrared
like CAD and GIS have a major contribution to the preservation
thermography investigation mapped the moisture distribution
and management of built cultural heritage, leading to its sustain-
among the masonry surfaces. At areas presenting lower tempera-
able development.
tures, as indicated by the thermal images, samples were taken in
various heights and depths and moisture and salt content was
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NS. Diagnostics and protection of Hagia Sophia mosaics. J Cult Heritage, in University of Athens Zografou Campus Athens 2004 Olympic Games Building.
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of IR thermography to damage characterization of structures and the diagnosis investigation of architectural surfaces in polluted urban atmosphere. In:
of historic monuments. In: Emerging technologies in non-destructive testing V Proceedings of the 39th international conference of the British Institute of
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Konstantinoupoli. Scientific responsible: Moropoulou A, financed by Greek methodology. In: Vandiver P, Goodway M, Druzik JR, Mass JL, editors.
Ministry of Culture; 1998–1999. Materials issues in art and archaeology VI, vol. 712. Pittsburgh: Publ.
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(CA): Alta Mira Press; 2004. term performance evaluation of consolidation treatments in situ. In: Biscontin
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deterioration mechanisms of vitreous tesserae mosaics. In: Biscontin G, 52, (1).
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2002. p. 843–51. methodology for assessing and decision making concerning preservation and
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the state of Hagia Sophia’s mosaics. In: Matikas T, editor. SmartStructures/ world heritage, Cities, September, 2004.
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Optical inspection for quantification of decay on stone surfaces. NDT&E Int management bases. Scientific responsible: Moropoulou A., financed by
2007;40(1):2–11. Regional Enterprising Programmes of Crete, 1996–1998.
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A. Diagnostic study at the acropolis of Sarantapicho and the acropolis of methodology for measuring and monitoring salt decay in the Medieval City of
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June 2, 2010. preservation of the medieval fortifications of the City of Rhodes. In:
[67] Moropoulou A, Delegou ET, Geraveli M, Michael S, Bacolas A, Strategic International conference secular medieval architecture in the Balkans, 1300–
planning of compatible conservation materials and interventions. The case 1500, and its preservation, AIMOS – Society for the study of medieval
study of mela place and ex hotel excelsior in Athens. In: Trakosopoulou K, architecture in the balkans and its preservation, and organization for the
Dousi M, Hajitrifon NK, editors. Interventions for the protection of historic cultural capital of Europe – Thessaloniki 1997, 3–5 November, 1997, [book of
abstracts].