Investigation of the rising damp phenomenon in historical Venetian buildings by a new multianalytical approach

Rising damp of sea water in Venice is a serious issue in the conservation field, due to the absorption of soluble salts which lead to physical degradation of bricks and mortars in masonries. The evaluation of the rising damp trend and its evolution through the time is useful for a future perspective and monitoring of the phenomenon, considering also the climate changes effects. The aim of the thesis is the evaluation of the effects over time and on an urban scale of the rising damp phenomenon. The research consists of two parts: i) evaluation of the rising damp process extent over time, through analysis of archive photos and comparison with the current situation ii) analysis of the actual conservation state through moisture content, soluble salts and soluble ions distribution evaluation in some historical buildings (Ca’Foscari, Ca’ Bottacin, Ex Slaughterhouse San Giobbe, Badoer Palace, Ca’ Tron and Malipiero Palace) and through non invasive methods (thermograms, visual documentation). This research represents an implementation of the already existing dataset on moisture distribution in Venetian masonries and buildings. The thesis is implemented within the framework of “Venezia 2021, Linea 5.3 Piano di adattamento al cambiamento climatico e implementazione di strategie di intervento per la salvaguardia del patrimonio architettonico”, project leaded by CORILA in partership with Ca’ Foscari.