Camilla Mileto

Constructive features and preservation work of rammed earth architecture:the Islamic tower of Bofilla (Valencia)

The Bofilla tower (Valencia, Spain), at 800 years old one of the oldest buildings still standing in the whole region, is a rubble-reinforced rammed earth construction almost 20 m high. Its precarious condition called for preservation works and the enhancement of the surrounding archaeological site. However, these works involved a serious risk that the original construction might lose its hallmarks and its history, which had great narrative potential, due to the plasticity of the earth. Furthermore, as often happens, a great deal of the character and antiquity of the tower were linked to the erosion and abrasion of its rammed earth surfaces, so it was necessary for the preservation to try to alleviate or stop the degradation that threatened the towers survival and, at the same time, conserve its narrative potential, its aura and its ancestral character. After performing a comprehensive preliminary study of the construction and its state of repair, a large number of preservation tasks were carried out, from cleaning the façades by hand to reconstructing the structure of the tower in several spots, such as the south-western corner and, especially, the entrance in the northern façade, which was on the verge of collapse. Other operations included filling in the lacunae in the fabric both inside and outside the tower, micro-pointing the rubble filling in the most degraded areas of the southern façade and protecting and consolidating the crowning. In addition, new floors and a staircase leading up to the top of the tower were inserted in the places where their traces were still visible to avoid damaging the fabrics and to perform the most faithful archaeological reconstruction possible. The article addresses the study, reflections and technical operations carried out on the tower during the works on site, with the objective of maintaining the original materiality of the rammed earth fabric and the traces of its construction and life as a testimony of its history.

The ancient gypsum mortars of the historical façades in the city center of Valencia (Spain)

In the historical centre of Valencia (Spain), the brick facades of the residential buildings which were built or modified in the end of the XVIII th century and the beginning of the XX th century have been protected and decorated with continuous renderings. According to the constructive tradition, the renderings had to be made with lime mortars, but the recent studies allowed to know their real nature: they are gypsum mortars. The main aim of the study has been to know the nature and the technical aspects of the historical renderings of the facades of the centre of Valencia, in order to discover their secrets from a theoretical and experimental point of view. Therefore, together with the examination of bibliographical sources, several samples of the historical mortars have been collected from renderings. The analytical results confirm that the great majority of samples are composed by gypsum mortars, with different degrees of purity and a variable amount of aggregate and lime. Some samples are mixed mortars (gypsum and lime mortars), but there are also examples of pure lime mortars probably indicating a change in the constructive tradition of the city in a historical moment as testified by the presence of buildings with brick walls bonded with lime mortar and gypsum mortars in the rendering. This fact supposes a conscious application of the gypsum in exteriors and the existence of a specific ancient technique. Moreover the analysis of the surfaces of renderings characterized by a specific finishing and several layers of painting, allows us to confirm that organic substances have been applied in order to protect the gypsum mortars from the inclemency of the weather. Definitively, the characterization of the gypsum mortars that cover the historical facades of the centre of Valencia allowed us to discover a particular and distinguishing aspect of the constructive tradition of the city that must be protected and valued in order to achieve its preservation.

Is Gypsum External Rendering Possible? The Use of Gypsum Mortar for Rendering Historic Façades of Valencia's City Centre

Valencia is a city located in the East of Spain by the Mediterranean Sea. It has a huge historic centre with ancient winding streets that contains buildings with a singular architectural heritage. The buildings’ façades are protected by a traditional external rendering, sometimes in bad state of conservation or modified or substituted in restoration works. The study carried out on historic renderings in Valencia points out the great employment of gypsum mortar or gypsum-lime mortar, among other peculiarities. Gypsum external rendering is one of the many uses for gypsum mortars in Valencia traditional architecture. This fact contradicts the general belief of the exclusive use of lime mortars for rendering a façade. The knowledge of the characteristics of historic mortars will allow us to implement a proper restoration work of architectural heritage with suitable mortars, as it is essential to guarantee the adherence and compatibility of any repair.

Microwaves as a Remedial Treatment of Wood

A pilot experiment of microwave treatment was carried out on an Art Nouveau residential building erected at the beginning of the 20th century in Valencia, Spain. The timber structure was affected by a combined damage caused by Anobium punctatum (common furniture beetle or common house borer) and Kalotermes flavicollis (yellownecked dry-wood termite). After performing an exhaustive preliminary study on the building and analyzing the different alternatives of wood treatment, it was decided to use a microwave machine especially designed to eliminate this type of wood boring insects.This machine generates microwaves, a type of electromagnetic radiation, with a frequency of 2.45 GHz. This circumstance makes it possible to produce a high-frequency alternating electric field that causes the rotation of the molecular dipoles of water. Because of this continuous rotation the temperature of the water rises considerably.By heating up the humidity inside a living being, as in the case of xylophagous insects, an artificial fever in the body is generated, and since the animal is not capable of tolerating this temperature, it dies.In order to eliminate xylophagous insects, the wood moisture content (usually between 10% and 12%) and the presence of water in wood boring insects (around 90%) must be taken into account. Due to the greater content of humidity the increase of the temperature is higher and quicker in insects than wood.After having studied and experimented with different combination of power and time of exposition to the microwaves, this machine was found capable of eliminating any type of insect that may live inside the timber without harming the wood itself.Prior to this pilot intervention, several research works were carried out with the same microwave machine, both on structural timber and wooden works of art. In all these studies it was observed that no damage was caused either to the wood or to the finish of the works of art including pigments, polishes, stains etc. On the other hand, 100% efficacy was achieved in the elimination of xylophagous insects.This article describes the design, experimentation and perfecting process of this microwave machine and its pilot application on structural timber in an Art Nouveau residential building. As an example of method, the intervention followed the main steps of diagnosis and treatment testing including the analysis of several options of intensity and time that led to the positive final results obtained.

Checking Gypsum as Structural Material

Gypsum, relegated in contemporaneous architecture to a secondary, auxiliary or decorative role, has been traditionally employed in some parts of Spain for building structural pillars, floors, massive walls, mortars, etc. The authors have studied this gypsum in its several local forms, from its firing in the kiln to the building process in order to unveil the reasons for its excellent structural behaviour. With the first hypothesis, several strength tests with present commercial gypsum have been made at the laboratory. They confirm the extraordinary structural performance of the material, if only some conditions are respected during the building process.

Understanding Spanish Timber Jack Arch Floors: Examples of Assessment and Conservation Issues

Jack arch floors are structures made of timber joists, with round or squared section, and segmental vaults either made of flat tiles or poured plaster conglomerate. They are especially diffused along the Mediterranean coast of Spain and can be considered as a main feature of the historical and vernacular architecture of the area. In order to assess and grade these structures several Spanish standards have been considered; however, even if the information contained is useful the Italian standard for the on-site diagnosis UNI 11119 of 2004 has been preferred. The method described in this standard leads the assessment through the grading of each and every timber element and the assignation of bearing properties that are essential for the consolidation project. This article will expose three examples of jack arch floors of the Valencian Community graded using the Italian standard and the conservation issues that arise from the results.

A Peculiar Spanish Timber Floor, the "Revoltón": A Diagnostic Example at the "Palacio del Marqués de Benicarló"

The paper deals with the application of the Italian method for assessing on-site and diagnosing timber elements to a distinctive Spanish type of horizontal structure called “revoltón” i.e. jack arch floor. As in Spain does not exist a specific regulation for the on-site diagnosis of timber elements, this analysis was performed according to the Italian standard UNI 11119. Due to the peculiar features of the jack arch floor some modifications were applied to the method.During spring 2012 the authors had the opportunity to carry out a pilot project by making a diagnostic analysis on a whole three stories building. The building, “Palacio del Marqués de Benicarló”, located in Spain in the town of Benicarló, between Barcelona and Valencia, was erected during the second half of the XVIII century. It maintains the original internal distribution and structure, and it is characterized by precious ceramic decorations on walls and floors. All the horizontal structures studied inside the palace were jack arch floor except the roof structure that was also made of timber.The results of the project described in the paper clarify the specific problems of the horizontal structures and the roof surveyed during the fieldwork. These results are accompanied by several plans that represent the information recovered on-site and lead to a complete assessment of the structures. The plans include the grading based on wood defects, the local moisture content of wood, the superficial and inner decay due to insects and rot and the deformation of the joists. In this way it was possible to locate the areas of the palace where more problems were concentrated, and better understand the causes and origin of the damages.

Al hilo entre la arquitectura y la arqueología: estudio y caracterización de construcciones bizantinas en Siria

A team of architects and experts from … has characterized and documented a couple of archaeological sites of Byzantine origin in Syria, settled along the river Euphrates, known as the cities of Tall as-Sin and Halabiya. The text figures out the surveys carried out from 2005 to 2010, the objectives and the methodology used and some results achieved during the years in spite of the recent civil war.

DEBATE AS A LEARNING STRATEGY. FLIP TEACHING AND USE OF ICTS

This text describes a teaching innovation experience in the framework of the department of Architectural Composition of Universitat Politècnica de València in three different subjects: Architectural Conservation (obligatory fifth-year subject from the Degree in Foundations of Architecture), Conservation of Non monumental Historic architecture (elective subject from the Master’s in Architecture) and Theory and History of Conservation (obligatory subject in the Official Master’s in Conservation of Architectural Heritage). The three subjects, worth important credits in theory, focus on skills based on the critical development of interlinked cultural, technological and material aspects of built historic architecture and criteria for intervention in architectural heritage. To do so the crucial flip teaching methodology, which encourages debate and confrontation, is particularly interesting. For the last few years the syllabi for these subjects have included a series of debates which students prepare for by studying the literature, initially working outside the classroom and promoting debate and critical analysis of these texts by specialists, theorists and/or regulation guidelines relating to architectural, monumental, traditional or vernacular conservation. The current proposal for these debate activities has been the introduction of digital technologies as a tool to encourage debate between students, making the activity more dynamic. The Socrative online platform was used in this experience as an immediate feedback tool, mainly because of the immediate response it offers to the questions posed, which could relate to the opinion held by the students, their degree of understanding of previously explained concepts or any other information whose interpretation could improve the learning process.

INTRODUCTION OF THE SUSTANAIBILITY’S CONCEPT IN THE ARCHITECT’S TRAINING. APPLICATION AND RESULTS

This article presents the results of the application of the Project for Educational Innovation and Improvement “ARQUITECTOS para el FUTURO. La sostenibilidad como factor de calidad en la arquitectura” [“ARCHITECTS for the FUTURE. Sustainability as a quality factor in architecture”] (PIME/UPV 2017-2018), through several degree and master’s subjects within the current training of architecture students at Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV). Although sustainable thought, design and construction are not innovative activities, as it has been shown to be so by such architects as nonagenarian Balkrishna Doshi, recent winner of the 2018 Pritzker Award, Alejandro Aravena (Pritzker 2016) or Diébédo Francis Kéré (Global Award for Sustainable Architecture 2009), among others, at the UPV School of Architecture a lack of understanding of the term has been observed, as has its subsequent misguided and fragmented application. In view of the above, this project was implemented to generate teaching/learning of new knowledge, skills and competences relating to the concept of ‘sustainability’. The execution of the project was based on the learning by doing methodology through three main practical tasks. The first was to identify and define the three fields environmental, socio-cultural and socio-economic on which sustainability is based. The second was to examine the sustainability of historically relevant architectural constructions and 21st-century works. Finally, learning and becoming skilled in the operation of the certification tool has shown the high cognitive level of students, their extensive cultural baggage, predisposition to teamwork and excellent skills in critical thinking. Results have exceeded the initial expectations for the project, which has produced the interest of our students in increasing their knowledge of design, composition, materials, building techniques and authors working in the field of architectural sustainability on the one hand, and on the other a fluidity in the analysis of architectural works and development of critical thinking on these in terms of sustainability.