![]() 14C on mortars exploits the uptake of atmospheric CO 2 by reaction with lime putty atmospheric carbon is then stored into CaCO 3-binder during the carbonation process. Mortar-based materials are undoubtedly contemporary to the building and their methods of production make them valuable objects for radiocarbon dating a building’s time of construction 3, 4. In the last 60 years, the possibility of using mortar as a material indicating the construction date of a building has been investigated, and there are examples of mortar dating studies that improved the chronological characterization of their investigated historical events 1, 2. Radiocarbon dating ( 14C) of archaeological and historical buildings is mostly based on dating organic materials. The results support that both the reliability assessment and the successful radiocarbon dating are possible through a multi-analytical approach encompassing mineralogical and petrographic characterization, X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, measurement of carbon and oxygen stable isotopes, and optical cathodoluminescence. Two complex architectural case studies from Northern Italy are presented and discussed in detail: the churches of Santa Maria Maggiore (Lomello, Pavia) and Santa Maria (Torba, Varese). ![]() Here we present a complete procedure for the processing and characterization of difficult mortars and of the separated binder fractions in order to assess a priori the chances of positively dating the mortar, and produce a binder fraction yielding the most reliable radiocarbon dates possible. The critical step is the separation of anthropogenic CaCO 3-binder from other carbonate sources that could severely affect the resulting dates. Radiocarbon dating of the carbonate binder of historical mortars is a strategic research topic not lacking in complexities.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |