Giuseppe Casula

An experimental application of a 3D terrestrial laser scanner and acoustic techniques in assessing the quality of the stones used in monumental structures

This paper briefly describes the preliminary results of an experiment that aimed to test a new nondestructive methodology based on the integrated application of Three-Dimensional (3D) terrestrial laser scanning and acoustic techniques in the ultrasonic range (54 kHz) in evaluating the quality of stone materials. Our target is to evaluate the state of conservation of stone materials by correlating ultrasonic longitudinal pulse velocity and frequency spectra with the reflectivity or reflectance of the reflected 3D Laser Scanner (LS) beam pulse transmitted to a part of an investigated surface.

An innovative methodology for the non-destructive diagnosis of architectural elements of ancient historical buildings

In the following we present a new non-invasive methodology aimed at the diagnosis of stone building materials used in historical buildings and architectural elements. This methodology consists of the integrated sequential application of in situ proximal sensing methodologies such as the 3D Terrestrial Laser Scanner for the 3D modelling of investigated objects together with laboratory and in situ non-invasive multi-techniques acoustic data, preceded by an accurate petrographical study of the investigated stone materials by optical and scanning electron microscopy. The increasing necessity to integrate different types of techniques in the safeguard of the Cultural Heritage is the result of the following two interdependent factors: 1) The diagnostic process on the building stone materials of monuments is increasingly focused on difficult targets in critical situations. In these cases, the diagnosis using only one type of non-invasive technique may not be sufficient to investigate the conservation status of the stone materials of the superficial and inner parts of the studied structures 2) Recent technological and scientific developments in the field of non-invasive diagnostic techniques for different types of materials favors and supports the acquisition, processing and interpretation of huge multidisciplinary datasets.

The MASSIMO system for the safeguarding of historic buildings in a seismic area: operationally-oriented platforms

Abstract In this paper, the non-invasive system MASSIMO is presented for the monitoring and the seismic vulnerability mitigation of the cultural heritage. It integrates ground-based, airborne and spaceborne remote sensing tools with geophysical and in situ surveys to provide the multi-spatial (regional, urban and building scales) and multi-temporal (long-term, short-term, near-real-time and real-time scales) monitoring of test areas and buildings. The measurements are integrated through web-based GIS and 3D visual platforms to support decision-making stakeholders involved in urban planning and structural requalification. An application of this system is presented over the Calabria region for the town of Cosenza and a test historical complex.