Petrophysical characteristics of the sandstones used in the construction of the Monumental Heritage of Ciudad Rodrigo, Salamanca. Spain

Abstract

Knowledge of the petrophysical characteristics of stones used in construction is evidently advantageous in the sense that it can help avoid wasting time and future disappointments when attempting to assess the results both in restoration work and in actual construction work. However, if the material used is sandstone, as in the case addressed here, such knowledge is even more pertinent since such materials are soft and porous. Here we offer an exhaustive study of the petrophysical characteristics of the sandstones used in the construction of the Monumental Heritage of Ciudad Rodrigo (Salamanca, Spain). Five different types of stone were used; namely, the Red, Brown, Striped, Nodular and White, varieties. The differences among these varieties lie in the degree of diagenetic transformation they have undergone. Each of them has important mineralogical, textural and structural differences as compared with its counterparts, implying that each variety will behave differently when used for construction purposes. The Red variety is the least transformed and hence the least suitable for construction. By contrast, the White is the variety that has undergone the greatest degree of diagenesis and is hence the most appropriate for such purposes.