ABSTRACT
In addition to standard laboratory methods, also a recently conceived non-destructive technique, denoted as Impulse Method (Antonaci et al. 2007, Antonaci & Bocca 2004), has been used to detect the response of the materials under consideration to the action of the given freezing-thawing cycles. The aim was to evaluate the possible discrepancy between the results obtained by traditional laboratory methods and the Impulse Method, so as to check if the latter could be potentially applicable directly on-site in order to get information about the evolution of the masonry components’ characteristics under the effect of environmental actions, during their life-time. In case of positive feedback, the Impulse Method (which is particularly interesting since it is a non-destructive, low-cost and easy-to-perform technique) could be furthermore developed in order to be used in the future in the framework of a specific experimental procedure aimed at the selection of the most appropriate repair material with the constraint to minimize the resort to extensive laboratory characterization tests.
