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Sensitivity of kersantite toughness to moisture: influence of the phyllosilicates

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Abstract

Evolution of the fracture behavior of a magmatic rock, the Loperhet kersantite, is under study to have a better understanding of the scaling effect occurring at the surface of monumental stone. A fracture mechanics approach is proposed to measure the ability to withstand a crack initiation and to observe the fracture surfaces after propagation. The influence of water saturation and moisture is considered and dependency of toughness with water vapor pressure is determined during humidification and drying. Results indicate that kersantite toughness decreases when moisture content increases. This is related to clay phases and phyllosilicates, involved in the swelling and identified as the weakness phases of the stone. Indeed, it appears that evolution of toughness and crack paths are related to the mineralogical weathering of these water-sensitive phases. Mineralogical microdamage due to moisture variations is involved in the evolution of the macroscopic mechanical behavior of kersantite.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by French state funds managed by the ANR within the Investissements d’Avenir program under reference ANR-11-IDEX-0004-02, and more specifically within the framework of the Cluster of Excellence MATISSE led by Sorbonne Universités.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Recherche des Monuments Historiques, 29 rue de Paris, 77420, Champs-sur-Marne, France

    Mathilde Tiennot, Jean-Didier Mertz & Ann Bourgès

  2. Sorbonne Universités, Centre de Recherche sur la Conservation (CRC, USR 3224), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication, CNRS, 36 rue Geoffroy-Saint-Hilaire, 75005, Paris, France

    Mathilde Tiennot, Jean-Didier Mertz & Ann Bourgès

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  1. Mathilde Tiennot
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  2. Jean-Didier Mertz
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  3. Ann Bourgès
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Correspondence to Mathilde Tiennot.

Additional information

This article is part of a Topical Collection in Environmental Earth Sciences on “Stone in the Architectural Heritage: from quarry to monuments—environment, exploitation, properties and durability”, guest edited by Siegfried Siegesmund, Luís Sousa, and Rubén Alfonso López-Doncel.

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Tiennot, M., Mertz, JD. & Bourgès, A. Sensitivity of kersantite toughness to moisture: influence of the phyllosilicates. Environ Earth Sci 77, 483 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-018-7666-1

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