University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Theses (Historic Preservation) Graduate Program in Historic Preservation 2017 Testing and Evaluation of Soil Based Grouts for the Adhesion of Consolidated and Un-Consolidated Painted Lime Plaster at the Mission San José de Tumacácori Nicole M. Declet Díaz University of Pennsylvania Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses Part of the Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons Declet Díaz, Nicole M., "Testing and Evaluation of Soil Based Grouts for the Adhesion of Consolidated and Un-Consolidated Painted Lime Plaster at the Mission San José de Tumacácori" (2017). Theses (Historic Preservation). 619. https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/619 Suggested Citation: Declet Díaz, Nicole (2017). Testing and Evaluation of Soil Based Grouts for the Adhesion of Consolidated and Un- Consolidated Painted Lime Plaster at the Mission San José de Tumacácori. (Masters Thesis). University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/619 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Testing and Evaluation of Soil Based Grouts for the Adhesion of Consolidated and Un-Consolidated Painted Lime Plaster at the Mission San José de Tumacácori Abstract The interior decorative painting at Mission San Jose de Tumacácori is a rare survival of late 18th century- early 19th century artistic traditions of northern Sonora and the Kino mission churches. Despite earlier attempts to stabilize these finishes, the original painted lime plaster has continued ot detach from the adobe substrate. Previous techniques to stabilize the paintings began with research by J. Rutherford Gettens in 1949-1952 and subsequent attempts in 1984 to reattach detached plaster have proven ineffective. The current research evaluates soil-based injection grouting in order to adhere the loose plaster on the nave and sanctuary walls. Earthen grouts were tested over the more commonly used hydraulic lime grouts in order to consider a more compatible system with the original construction materials. A well-designed earthen grout must be fluid enough ot insure full penetration, exhibit low shrinkage and strong bond strength equal to its own cohesive strength for successful repair. Samples of the original adobe, mortar, and plaster were analyzed and local soils were sampled and tested in order to design a grout displaying optimal properties. The test grout was subjected to several geo-technical tests including viscosity, density, shrinkage, and expansion/ bleeding; as well as its hardened properties such as splitting tensile strength, capillary water absorption, water retention and permeability. The selected grout’s performance was finally analyzed with a mock-up assembly composed of friable plaster facsimiles and adobe, simulating 1/2" and 1/4" gaps. Half of the plaster facsimiles were consolidated with nanolime due to their friable nature based on recent parallel research. The research expands current knowledge on the use of earthen grouts for reattachment of earthen and lime plasters on earthen substrates. Keywords detachment, earthen grout, HMP, consolidation, reattachment Disciplines Historic Preservation and Conservation Comments Suggested Citation: Declet Díaz, Nicole (2017). Testing and Evaluation of Soil Based Grouts for the Adhesion of Consolidated and Un-Consolidated Painted Lime Plaster at the Mission San José de Tumacácori. (Masters Thesis). University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. This thesis or dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/619 TESTING AND EVALUATION OF SOIL BASED GROUTS FOR THE ADHESION OF CONSOLIDATED AND UN-CONSOLIDATED PAINTED LIME PLASTER AT THE MISSION SAN JOSE DE TUMACÁCORI. Nicole Mariel Declet Díaz A THESIS in Historic Preservation Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania In Partial Fulfillments of the Requirements of the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN HISTORIC PRESERVATION 2017 ______________________ Advisor Frank G. Matero Professor of Architecture ______________________ Program Chair Randall F. Mason Associate Professor and Chair, Historic Preservation Acknowledgments First, I would like to thank my thesis advisor, Frank G. Matero for suggesting such a wonderful topic, and for the opportunity to work with such an outstanding structure, The Mission San José de Tumacácori. His guidance and encouragement during this process was invaluable. I would also like to thank the U.S. National Park Service, and the Tumacácori National Historic Park’s staff, in particular, Alex B. Lim, for all of his help in acquiring materials for this testing program. Thank you to the ACL Staff for providing access to all their background information on Tumacácori. I am very appreciative of Courtney Magill, for her ongoing support and assistance in making sure I had everything I needed to perform testing for this research. I would also like to thank my classmates, the HPSV Class of 2017, in particular Araba Prah for her support during the long nights in the laboratory and for her assistance during testing. Special thanks to Nityaa Iyer for responding promptly to questions regarding her wonderful research on soil grouts. Finally, I am extremely thankful to my family and friends for providing me immense joy and support. ii Contents Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................. ii Table of Contents .................................................................................................................. iii List of Figures ........................................................................................................................ vi List of Tables .......................................................................................................................... xi Chapter 1: Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 2: Context ................................................................................................................. 3 2.1 Mission San José de Tumacácori History ..................................................................... 3 2.1.1 Materials and Construction ................................................................................... 9 2.1.2 Plaster Composition & Description- Previous Analysis ....................................... 13 2.1.3 Adobe Composition & Description ..................................................................... 14 2.2 Conditions and Factors enabling deterioration ......................................................... 18 2.3 Conservation Treatment History at Tumacácori ....................................................... 25 2.3.1 Conservation Treatments: 1920s to 1960s ......................................................... 26 2.3.2 Conservation Treatments: 1970s ........................................................................ 32 2.3.3 Conservation Treatments: 1980s ........................................................................ 38 2.3.4 Conservation Treatments: 1990s to 2000s ......................................................... 41 2.3.5 Conservation Treatments: 2010s to present ...................................................... 43 Chapter 3: Grout Injection Used for Repair on Earthen Buildings ...................................... 46 3.1 Brief History on Grout Injection Used for Repair on Earthen Buildings .................... 46 3.2 Challenges with Grouting ........................................................................................... 47 3.3 Structural and Nonstructural Repair Grouts .......................................................... 48 3.4 Amended and Unamended Earthen Grouts .............................................................. 49 3.5 Earthen Grout Design ................................................................................................. 52 3.5.1 Methodology and Testing Schedule ................................................................... 53 3.5.2 Earthen Grout Properties .................................................................................... 55 3.6 Conclusive Remarks ................................................................................................... 59 Chapter 4: Methodology ...................................................................................................... 61 iii 4.1 Sample Retrieval and Material Characterization ....................................................... 61 4.2 Adobe and Soil Characterization ................................................................................ 63 4.2.1 Summary of Results ............................................................................................. 71 4.2.2 Original Adobe Results Conclusion ..................................................................... 80 Chapter 5: Grout Design ...................................................................................................... 81 5.1 Selection of Soil “E” for grout binder ......................................................................... 81 5.1.1 Grout Formulation and Components .................................................................. 83 5.2 Grout Mixing ............................................................................................................... 84 5.3 Grout Testing .............................................................................................................