Cristina Maria Belfiore

University of Catania | UNICT · Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BIOMLG)

This paper explores the use of waste materials as substitutes in ceramic paste formulations. Building on previous research which has laid the groundwork for the use of volcanic ash as temper in ceramic tile manufacture, investigation is here extended to a broader spectrum of waste-based ceramic pastes. Specifically, five different mixtures have bee...

In the last decades, there have been several studies on Cultural Heritage regarding the performance of protective and consolidating coatings for the prevention of decay. A coating must have several characteristics such as efficiency, breathability, and must be durable and reversible. In this research work, the performance of a commercial protective...

Since Roman Age, the reactiveness of the mortars was empirically sought using different aggregates added to lime to confer hydraulic properties. With the advent of microanalytical studies, great strides have been made toward a better understanding of how the aggregates can catalyze the formation of hydraulic phases. However, due to the small scale...

A combination of conventional and un-conventional methods is here used to assess the physical-mechanical properties of some alkaline activated pastes and mortars. The latter were purposely synthetized by using Etna ashes as precursor, whose suitability in the alkaline activation process has been ascertained by previous studies. Additionally, the po...

In this contribution a non-destructive approach has been used aiming at investigating the chemical composition of 35 ceramic items belonging to the collections of the Regional Aeolian Museum “Luigi Bernabò Brea” in the Lipari Island (Sicily, Italy). Different vessel types have been selected for analysis, including aryballoi, kotylai, olpai, anforis...

Historical buildings of Catania city centre (Eastern Sicily, Italy) have been built for centuries using natural stone materials from local resources, including volcanic and carbonate rocks, matched in a peculiar bichromy. Particular attention is here paid on the carbonate rocks, which are generally more susceptible to decay processes. Such stones a...

Syracuse and the other cities of the Hyblaean area (in south-eastern Sicily) are characterized by a close relationship between building stone and geological context, since the wide use of local calcarenites characterized and defined their urban planning and architecture. In this paper, we discuss the results of a research aimed at investigating fou...

The paper deals with an experimental study aimed at assessing the possible re-use of volcanic ash as temper in the manufacture of ceramic tiles. Needing to find end of waste alternatives for this material arises from the awareness that the fall-out of large quantities of ash in active volcanic areas causes many inconveniences to com- munities livin...

During the last decades, many studies have been carried out on environmental monitoring in specific sites aiming at their protection and conservation; however, researches focused on the direct implications, in terms of quantitative evaluation of stone deterioration, of these monitoring actions are still scarce. This experimental work aims at monito...

This paper deals with the analysis of black crust coming from the statue of Oceanus belonging to the Fontana di Trevi (Rome). This monument is undoubtedly one of the main touristic attractions of Rome. During the restoration held between 2014 and 2015, some diagnostic analyses had been carried out. It has been highlighted that the sheltered surface...

The present work represents the first study addressed to the provenance attribution of marbles from the Villa dei Quintili, an important Roman archaeological site located in the south-eastern area of Rome (Italy). The monumental villa was built in the 2nd century A.D. at the behest of the brothers Sesto Quintilio Condiano and Sesto Quintilio Valeri...

A new semi-automated image processing procedure based on multivariate statistical analysis of X-ray maps has been here used to compute the element distribution between and within specific phases, recognized inside a hydraulic Roman mortar sample. This new tool package, largely centred on functions implemented in ArcGis®, is based on the semi-automa...

Nano-sized titanium dioxide has demonstrated its efficiency in many application fields thanks to its photocatalytic features that provide self-cleaning properties to the materials with simple and non-expensive procedures. For this reason, it has been successfully used also for the practice of restoration of stone built heritage. However, some aspec...

This work focuses on the study of alteration and degradation forms affecting underwater archaeological marble fragments mainly due to biological activity. The studied artefacts were recovered from the submerged archaeological park of Baia (Naples, Italy). It includes ruins of the ancient city of Baiae, which, since the 4th century AD, started to be...

The deterioration of a stone material is related to its pore structure, which affects the interaction between surface and environmental agents. Indeed, salt crystallization is one of the most dangerous weathering agents in porous building materials. The crystallization pressure of salt crystals, growing in confined pores, is found to be the main ca...

The present work represents the first study addressed to the provenance attribution of marbles from the Villa dei Quintili, an important Roman archaeological site located in the south-eastern area of Rome (Italy). The monumental villa was built in the 2nd century A.D. at the behest of the brothers Sesto Quintilio Condiano and Sesto Quintilio Valeri...

This paper deals with the proposal of an original experimental methodological approach specifically designed for appraising any compositional alteration and/or contamination of archaeological ceramics after the protracted contact with seawater. A series of ceramic test- pieces (briquettes and cylinders) were purposely manufactured by mixing selecte...

Roman mortars were collected from the Villa dei Quintili in Rome, an archaeological site consisting of numerous edifices from nine construction phases dating from the 2nd century A.D. to modern times. A multianalytical approach was used on 34 mortar samples to infer the evolution of production techniques over time and to identify the source area of...

The Cathedral of Seville is one of the most important buildings in the whole of southern Spain. It suffers, like most of the historical buildings located in urban environments, from several degradation phenomena related to the high pollution level. Undoubtedly, the formation of black crusts plays a crucial role in the decay of the stone materials b...

This work presents results from a petrographic, morphological and chemical study of the black crusts developing on monuments in three Italian cities, the Cathedral of Milan, the Cathedral of St. Maria del Fiore in Florence, and the Vittoriano Monument in Rome. Black crusts (BCs) were studied with traditional techniques such as optical microscopy (O...

The focus of this research is to investigate the minero-petrographic features and the conservation aspects of the stone materials from some rock-hewn churches in Cappadocia region (Turkey) in order to choose the most appropriate consolidating systems to improve the resistance against the weathering and degradation phenomena of this unique world her...

This contribution focuses on the study of historical mortars from a Roman archaeological site known as Villa dei Quintili, a monumental villa located in the south-eastern part of Rome (Italy). The study was carried out on 38 mortar samples, collected from several edifices within the complex. A multi-analytical approach, including polarized optical...

The present contribution is concerned with the archaeometric study of underwater Dressel 1 amphorae recovered from a late-Republican shipwreck, identified in 1986 near the island of Ponza (Italy). The study aims to identify the production area of investigated amphorae (now assumed to be localized in the Latial/Campanian area) and, therefore, verify...

This contribution focuses on spectrometric analyses carried out on crust samples covering the stone surface of the boundary walls of the Tower of London. The main goal of this research is to investigate the degradation processes related to the environmental impact on cultural heritage. Specifically, the chemical contamination of stone substrate in...

Salt crystallisation process is one of the most powerful weathering agents in stone materials, especially in the coastal areas, where sea-spray transports large amount of salts on the stone surface. The consolidation of such degraded stone material represents a critical issue in the field of restoration of cultural heritage. In this paper, the nano...

This contribution focuses on spectrometric analyses carried out on crust samples covering the stone surface of the boundary walls of the Tower of London. The main goal of this research is to investigate the degradation processes related to the environmental impact on cultural heritage. Specifically, the chemical contamination of stone substrate in...

This work belongs to the framework of the national research project “COMAS” (Planned COnservation, “in situ”, of underwater archaeological artifacts), funded by the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research (MIUR), concerning the submarine archaeological area of Baia (Naples, Italy). The site includes remains of the ancient cities of...

During the last restoration of the six paintings by Raffaele Rinaldi (1851-1916), located in the church of Maria SS. Annunziata (Marano Principato, Cosenza, Italy), made between 1890 and 1903, several scientific investigations were carried out on them. The present work aims at classifying the painting in terms of its materials and technical particu...

Black crusts are recognized to have been, up to now, one of the major deterioration forms affecting the built heritage in urban areas. Their formation is demonstrated to occur mainly on carbonate building materials, whose interaction with an SO2-loaded atmosphere leads to the transformation of calcium carbonate (calcite) into calcium sulfate dihydr...

Salt crystallization is widely recognized as a cause of deterioration of porous building materials. In particular, the crystallization pressure of salt crystals growing in confined pores is found to be the main cause for damage. The aim of this study is to better understand the degradation of porous rocks induced by salt crystallization and correla...

During the last restoration of the six paintings by Raffaele Rinaldi (1851–1916), located in the church of Maria SS. Annunziata (Marano Principato, Cosenza, Italy), made between 1890 and 1903, several scientific investigations were carried out on them. The present work aims at classifying the painting in terms of its materials and technical particu...