Rising damp in building stones: Numerical and experimental comparison in lecce stone and carparo under controlled microclimatic conditions

Rising damp is considered one of the most widespread and damaging deterioration processes in buildings, architectural and cultural heritage. A widespread lack of knowledge of this phenomenon has often led to inadequate corrective measures with the consequent accelerated masonry deterioration. This work focuses on the dynamic evaluation of rising damp in two typical and widely used building stones in Southern Italy (Salento peninsula): Lecce Stone and Carparo. Under controlled and monitored microclimatic conditions, an experimental campaign has been carried out in laboratory, starting from two dry monolithic blocks. The blocks were periodically wetted, weighed and the height of rising damp measured in the tested materials. At the end of the campaign, the rising damp behaviour has been derived using the well-known mathematical model of Christopher Hall and William D. Hoff. Finally, the theoretical model was adapted to the case study, modifying the model constants based on the collected experimental data. The results were analysed, and the study showed a good agreement between the numerical and experimental data in both tested materials.