Consolidation of Stone

    Consolidation is the treatment of stone with a substance that restores the mechanical properties after they have been degraded by weathering. We have investigated several classes of inorganic consolidants: (1) commercial silicates based on tetraethoxysilane, (2) particle-modified consolidants, in which colloidal oxide particles are incorporated into a silicate consolidant to modify its properties, and (3) consolidants based on hydroxyapatite.

Silicate Consolidants:

“Stress development during drying of Conservare OH®”, G.W. Scherer and G. Wheeler, pp. 355-362 in Proc. 4th Int. Symp. Conservation of Monuments in the Mediterranean, Vol. 3, eds. A. Moropoulou, F. Zezza, E. Kollias, I. Papachristodoulou (Tech. Chamber Greece, Athens, 1997)


“Silicate Consolidants for Stone”, G.W. Scherer and G. S. Wheeler, Key Engineering Materials Vol. 391 (2009) pp 1-25 (online at http://www.scientific.net © (2009) Trans Tech Publications, Switzerland)


“Swelling clays and salt crystallization: Damage mechanisms and the role of consolidants”, G.W. Scherer and I. Jiménéz Gonzalez, pp. 29-39 in Proc. Int. Symp. Stone Consolidation in Cultural Heritage, eds. J. Delgado Rodrigues and J. Manuel Mimoso (Laboratório Nacional de Engenharia Civil, Lisbon, 2008) ISBN 978-972-49-2135-8

Particle-Modified Consolidants:

“Compatible Consolidants”, M. Yang, G.W. Scherer, and G.S. Wheeler, pp. 201-208 in Compatible Materials for the Protection of European Cultural Heritage, eds. G. Biscontin, A. Moropoulou, M. Erdik, J. Delgado Rodrigues, PACT 56 (Tech. Chamber Greece, Athens, 1998)


“Particle-modified Consolidants”, M.R. Escalante, R. Flatt, G.W. Scherer, D. Tsiourva, and A. Moropoulou, pp. 425-429 in Protection and Conservation of the Cultural Heritage of the Mediterranean Cities, eds. E. Galán and F. Zezza (Balkema, Lisse, The Netherlands, 2002)


“Compatible consolidants from particle-modified gels”, M.R. Escalante, J. Valenza, and G.W. Scherer, pp. 459-465 in Proc. 9th Int. Cong. Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, Vol. 2, ed. V. Fassina (Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2000)


“Materials Science Research for Conservation of Sculpture and Monuments”, G.W. Scherer, R. Flatt, and G. Wheeler, MRS Bulletin, Jan. 2001, pp. 44-50


“Rheology optimization of Particle Modified Consolidants”, E. Aggelakopoulou, P. Charles, M.E. Acerra,  A.I.  Garcia, R.J. Flatt, and G.W. Scherer, pp.15-20 in Materials Issues in Art & Archaeology VI, MRS Symposium Proc. Vol. 712, eds. P.B. Vandiver, M. Goodway, and J.L. Mass (Materials Res. Soc., Warrendale, PA, 2002)


“Particle-modified consolidants: A study on the effect of particles on sol-gel properties and consolidation effectiveness”, C. Miliani, M.L. Velo-Simpson, G.W. Scherer, J. Cult. Herit. 8 (2007) 1-6, doi:10.1016/j.culher.2006.10.002


Hydroxyapatite Consolidants:


“The use of hydroxyapatite as a new inorganic consolidant for damaged carbonate stones”, Enrico Sassoni, Sonia Naidu, George W. Scherer, Journal of Cultural Heritage 12 (2011) 346–355


“Preliminary Results of the Use of Hydroxyapatite as a Consolidant for Carbonate Stones”, E. Sassoni, S. Naidu, and G.W. Scherer, Paper WW4.5, Materials Research Society Symposium WW, Materials Issues in Art and Archaeology IX, November 29 - December 2, 2010, Boston, MRS Online Proceedings Library, 1319 (2011) mrsf10-1319-ww04-05


“New Treatment for Corrosion-Resistant Coatings for Marble and Consolidation of Limestone”, S. Naidu, E. Sassoni, and G.W. Scherer, pp. 289-294 in Jardins de Pierres (SFIIC, Champs-sur-Marne, France, 2011) 


“Effectiveness of hydroxyapatite as a consolidating treatment for lithotypes with varying carbonate content and porosity”, E. Sassoni, E. Franzoni, B. Pigino, G.W. Scherer, S. Naidu, pp. 338-343 in Proc. 5th Int. Cong. Sci. Technol. Safeguard of Cul-tural Heritage in the Mediterranean Basin, Istanbul (2012), held 22-25 November 2011


“Consolidation of calcareous and siliceous sandstones by hydroxyapatite: com-parison with a TEOS-based consolidant”, E. Sassoni, E. Franzoni, B. Pigino, G.W. Scherer, S. Naidu, J. Cultural Heritage 14 [3] (2012) e103-e108


“Artificial weathering of stone by heating”, E. Franzoni, E. Sassoni, G.W. Scherer, S. Naidu, J. Cultural Heritage 14 [3] (2012) e85-e93


“Hydroxyapatite-based consolidant and the acceleration of hydrolysis of silicate-based consolidants”, S. Naidu, C. Liu, G.W. Scherer, J. Cultural Heritage 16 (2015) 94-101 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2014.01.001


“Nucleation, growth and evolution of calcium phosphate films on calcite”, S. Naidu and G.W. Scherer, J. Colloid Interface Sci. 435 (2014) 128–137


“Development of hydroxyapatite films to reduce the dissolution rate of marble”, S. Naidu and G.W. Scherer, Proc. 12th Int. Cong. Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, New York, 2012 (http://iscs.icomos.org/cong-12.html)


 “Consolidation of a porous limestone by means of a new treatment based on hy-droxyapatite”, E. Sassoni, E. Franzoni, G.W. Scherer, S. Naidu, Proc. 12th Int. Cong. Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, New York, 2012 (http://iscs.icomos.org/cong-12.html)


“Nucleation, Growth and Evolution of Hydroxyapatite Films on Calcite”, S. Naidu, J.M. Blair and G.W. Scherer, MRS Proceedings, Vol. 1656 (2015) mrsf13-1656-pp08-04 doi:10.1557/opl.2014.814.


 “Hydroxyapatite-based consolidant and the acceleration of hydrolysis of silicate-based consolidants”, S. Naidu, C. Liu, G.W. Scherer, in Materials Issues in Art and Archaeology X, MRS Symposium Proc. Vol. 1656 (2015), eds. P.B. Vandiver, M. Goodway, and J.L. Mass (Materials Res. Soc., Warrendale, PA, 2014) DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1557/opl.2014.712


“Hydroxyapatite coatings for marble protection: optimization of calcite covering and acid resistance”, G. Graziani, E. Sassoni, E. Franzoni, G.W. Scherer, Appl. Surf. Sci. 368 (2016) 241–257


“Acid-Resistant Coatings on Marble”, S. Naidu, J. Blair, G.W. Scherer, J. Am. Ce-ram. Soc. (2016) DOI: 10.1111/jace.14355


“Acrylic-based mortar for stone repair: a viscoelastic analysis of the thermal stresses”, T. Demoulin, G.W. Scherer, F. Girardet and R.J. Flatt, pp. 521-528 in Sci-ence and Art: A Future for Stone: Proceedings of the 13th International Congress on the Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, Vol. I. Eds. J. Hughes & T. Howind (Pais-ley, Univ. West of Scotland, 2016) 


“Marble protection by hydroxyapatite coatings” G. Graziani, E. Sassoni, E. Fran-zoni, G.W. Scherer, pp. 803-810 in Science and Art: A Future for Stone: Proceedings of the 13th International Congress on the Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, Vol. II. Eds. J. Hughes & T. Howind (Paisley, Univ. West of Scotland, 2016)


“Use of consolidants and pre-consolidants in sandstone with swelling clay at the Municipal Theatre of São Paulo”, D. Grossi, E.A. Del Lama and G.W. Scherer, pp. 811-816 in Science and Art: A Future for Stone: Proceedings of the 13th International Congress on the Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, Vol. II. Eds. J. Hughes & T. Howind (Paisley, Univ. West of Scotland, 2016) 


“Consolidation of sugaring marble by hydroxyapatite: some recent develop-ments on producing and treating decayed samples”, E. Sassoni, G. Graziani, E. Franzoni, G.W. Scherer, pp. 947-954 in Science and Art: A Future for Stone: Proceed-ings of the 13th International Congress on the Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, Vol. II. Eds. J. Hughes & T. Howind (Paisley, Univ. West of Scotland, 2016)


“Mineral Consolidants”, G.W. Scherer and E. Sassoni, pp. 1-10 in Int. RILEM Conf. Materials, Systems and Structures in Civil Eng. on Historical Masonry, Eds. Inge Rörig-Dalgaard and Ioannis Ioannou (RILEM, Tech. Univ. Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark, 2016) ISBN: 978-2-35158-174-2



© Princeton University 2012