Study of TiO2-Modified Sol Coating Material in the Protection of Stone-Built Cultural Heritage

Abstract

Coating materials can effectively protect stone-built cultural heritage and, as such, research into coating materials has gained comprehensive attention from researchers. The aim of this work is to prepare a TiO2-modified sol coating material (TSCM) and study its protective effects on stone-built cultural heritage. TSCM and pure TiO2 sol (p-sol, unmodified; for comparison) were applied evenly over the entire surface of stone samples. The prepared stone samples included untreated stone, stone treated with pure sol, and stone treated with TSCM. The protective effects of TSCM were evaluated by water absorption, water vapor permeability, acid resistance, and weather resistance experiments. The results show that stone treated with TSCM has excellent water absorption and water vapor permeability, strong acid resistance, and good weather resistance, compared with untreated stone or stone treated with p-sol. The acid resistance of stone treated by TSCM was 1.75 times higher than that treated with traditional coating materials. The weather resistance cycle number of stone treated by TSCM was four times higher than that treated with organic protective materials. These findings are expected to provide useful suggestions for the protection of stone-built cultural heritage.