Adhesive Materials for the Conservation Interventions in the Acropolis Monuments

During the conservation interventions that occur in the Acropolis monuments, there is a need to develop compatible adhesive materials that will bond small fragments to the stone substrate of architectural members. For this purpose, different hydraulic pastes and mortars were designed with the aim to assess their adhesive efficacy. For comparative reasons, syntheses of white cement and an epoxy resin were evaluated as well. "Sandwich" specimens were prepared by using stone (marble and limestone) and the adhesive materials and subjected in shear tests, in 1,6 and 12 months of curing time. The higher shear bond values are ensured for cement and epoxy resin, accompanied by a substrate failure. On the other hand, sufficient shear strength was acquired by hydraulic materials. Thus, they may consider an attractive alternative for binding small stone fragments on the ancient blocks of the Acropolis monuments.