Compatibility, effectiveness and susceptibility to degradation of alkoxysilane-based consolidation treatments on a carbonate stone

Abstract Alkoxysilane-based consolidation treatment are commonly employed in restoration and conservation works of Cultural Heritage buildings. However, their poor affinity to carbonate stones is well-known. In this paper, we evaluate three consolidant treatments (two of them modified to incorporate hydrophobic or photocatalytic properties), formulated to circumvent this drawback and their cracking during drying, through a surfactant-assisted synthesis. The consolidants were applied on Noto stone, a biocalcarenite (~95% CaCO3 ) employed in numerous Cultural Heritage buildings of Southern Italy. A comprehensive validation of the three consolidants, compared to a commercial TEOS based consoli…