Wood and Masonry Coatings: Enhancement and Durability

Dear Colleagues,

Traditional architecture, particularly those that were constructed using timber, masonry and earthen material, often have the practice of applying some form of organic and/or inorganic coating on the surface of these building materials to serve as a sacrificial coating against natural weathering. When organic-based traditional building material such as timber was used, special care and maintenance was taken to determine its bio-deterioration nature, material anisotrophy and flammability factors. Although traditional coating methods are chemically more compatible with traditonal building materials, the preparation is often more time-consuming, at times toxic, and less durable. On the contrary, modern chemical coatings, often functioning as water repellent or absorbant, biocide or flame retardant, etc., have the advantages of simple preparation and long-lasting effects, making them a potential candidate for the protection of traditional buildings.

As we transit from the era of global warming to the era of global boiling, we need to reconcile ourselves to the fact that more heretic and intense climate change will become the norm in the coming future. Therefore, there is an urgent need for us to understand the implications of global boiling and to find ways to mitigate its effects on ancient built heritage. With the availability of modern technology to monitor and predict future climatic conditions and structural health of the ancient buildings, we can move towards a more proactive approach to intercept potential risks and durability issues that might occur on the ancient buildings when traditional and modern coatings are applied in the long run.

The aim of this Special Issue, ‘Wood and Masonry Coatings: Enhancement and Durability’, is to study related scientific problems that involved the application of coatings in the process of cleaning, protection and restoration for built heritage through original research papers and critical review articles. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Coatings for movable and immovable cultural heritage, such as timber and masonry (stone, earth and brick) structures, archeological sites (earthen sites, grottoes, etc.) in preservation and consolidation；
• Modeling and simulation to predict coating properties, performance, durability and reliability in service environments;
• Compatibility of modern and traditional coating materials;
• Effects of climate change, topograhical variations, etc., on the applications of coatings on built heritage;
• Latest development and application of new theory, methods and materials in the preservation of built heritage.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Sok-Yee Yeo
Prof. Dr. Shibing Dai
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• traditional and modern coatings
• climate change
• extreme environments
• degradation mechanism
• modeling of coatings