Mi, Xiaochen, Li, Tying, Wang, Jinping, Hu, Yongfeng, in their essay “Evaluation of Salt-Induced Damage to Aged Wood of Historical Wooden Buildings,” discuss the damage that salt can cause to historical buildings do to their aged wood. They focus on salt specifically because of how abundant it is and how easily it can slip into the cracks of buildings. They argue that salt due to it’s ability to deteriorate materials can compromise the integrity of said wood and therefore the integrity of the building. In order to find these effects they conducted multi chemical tests and multiple xray based analysis. They argue that due to the finding they found governments and other sources of authority on historical preservation should be more careful of this kind of deterioration in order to better preserve historical buildings.
This pertains to my research question of “how is modern technology affecting the process of preserving historical buildings.” This essay is relevant because it highlights how the use of modern technology through the use of modern analysis techniques is affecting the preservation process of historical buildings. The discovery that the authors made used modern technology through the use of x-ray microscopes and other highly technological devices and procedures. Without the use of modern technology we might have continued to be ignorant about the danger of salt on historical buildings. These discoveries help shape the field of preservation of historical buildings as in the hands of preservation authorities these discoveries can help introduce policies and regulation that help better the future preservation of historical buildings.
Link to source: http://eznvcc.vccs.edu:2048/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=144890304&site=ehost-live&scope=site
858815 November 29, 2022
Hallo Chris. I think your idea is very fascinating. Something that I am a little bamboozled about is how salt gets in the buildings. Is the salt coming from human actions on or within historical buildings or is the salt from natural sources such as the weather? I would like to know how this pertains to specific uses of technology to preserve these structures from salt degradation. Nice approach!
Justin November 30, 2022
This source seems to be very integral to the content of your paper because of how it is critiquing a process of building preservation that has been used often in the past. My knowledge of this subject is rather thin, so this article is sparking intrigue within me as to what materials and substances are optimal for building preservation. I feel as if our modern technology is capable of synthesizing multiple materials into one super-material that achieves its purpose better than salt or any other substance. I look forward to seeing how your research develops.
Erica November 30, 2022
I enjoyed reading this blog post because personally, you took a different approach to technology than what my mind went to when hearing the word “technology”. My mind usually goes straight to phones and other electronic devices but I like how you and the author of this source incorporated x-ray based technology rather than electronics. I am curious to see the other sources you can find based on this source and see what other authors experiences are with this topic.
Nick G November 30, 2022
This would probably affect coastal buildings more naturally, so I think technological advancements in analyzing salt concentrations would be most useful in places like Venice, Italy and other cities and towns with frequent or constant contact with salt or brackish water. The preservation of historical buildings is becoming more important as the world’s climate changes as well as the materials being released into the environment due to mass industrialization. Hopefully, there will be a fine balance between progressing the structural foundations of modern buildings with new technology while remaining aware of the weaknesses of aging landmarks.