37º IAHS World Congress on Housing: - Universidad de Cantabria

XXXVII <strong>IAHS</strong><strong>World</strong> <strong>Congress</strong> on HousingOctober 26 – 29, 2010, Santander, SpainCODE: 1013NON DESTRUCTIVE TECHNIQUES FOR THECONSERVATION OF STONE STAIRCASES IN HISTORICALBUILDINGSM. De Fino, G. De Tommasi, F. FatigusoDepartment of Architecture and Town PlanningTechnical University of Bari, Italye-mail: m.defino@poliba.itKey words: Historical buildings, Stone staircases, Non destructive techniques, Ultrasonic pulsevelocity testAbstractThe transition of buildings over the first decades of the 20 th century from traditional materialsto industrial techniques was quite crucial. In fact, such a change meant to overcome a wellestablished technical culture toward a new design and construction approach. As aconsequence, it has led to several relevant problems, which should be carefully evaluated inorder to ensure the conservation and safety of such buildings.The present paper is going to focus on staircases, which are among the most criticalconstructional elements, for variety and complexity of mixed technical solutions and forstructural vulnerability. Specifically, it will provide with an overview on the investigation ofstone cantilever staircases and iron/brick landings in a representative case study, the publichousing complex “Duca degli Abruzzi” (Bari, Italy), consisting of 11 residential buildings,dating back to 1908-1931, and 34 stairways. The investigation will involve the classificationof construction materials and techniques, the identification of decay and damage and theapplication of ultrasonic pulse velocity testing, in order to assess the state of conservation.The results analysis will address pros and cons of the investigation technique for the specificpurposes, as well as a qualitative performance evaluation of the structures.37º <strong>IAHS</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Congress</strong> On Housing Science 344