Damage on hydraulic mortars: the Venice Arsenal

Very few scientific studies have been performed so far on ancient and modern hydraulic mortars. The effects of atmospheric multipollutants on hydraulic mortars used in monuments and historic buildings in urban areas, especially those linked to and dry and wet carbon and sulphur deposition, remain in need of thorough investigation. In the literature, studies on damage typology identification, composition and origin and relative quantitative data are both scarce and rather poor in quality. While the sulphate source from marine spray deposition and water capillary rising are known, atmospheric sulphur effects on mortars still require elucidation. Ancient and modern hydraulic mortars have been collected from the Arsenal of Venice. The original material characterisation and the evaluation of the surface damage due to atmospheric pollution are presented along with a comparison of the data obtained for the cement and cocciopesto mortars.