Sandstone is a typical example of
sedimentary rock, which is clastic in nature. Sometimes sandstones are also
known as Arenite. Almost all of the sandstones are composed of either feldspar
or quartz since they are the most abundant minerals on earth. The use of
sandstone has been known to man since the historic times. Sandstone has been
used since the ancient ages for domestic construction of house wares. It is still used for the same purposes;
however, the methods have been quite improved because of the advancement in
technologies.
Reason for sandstone’s
popularity as a building material
Sandstone is an instant hit among
the construction workers as a building material because of the primary reason
that it is simple to work upon and carve, since it is a relatively softer stone
when compared to the other stones. Even though sandstones are on the relatively
softer side, yet they can withstand weathering largely, thereby making them a
good choice as building materials.
Indian Sandstone has been used extensively in constructing many
ancient structures like temples, residential units as well as other buildings. The
quality of sandstone supplied by Indian Sandstone supplier has also been part of aesthetic piece of works as well like
statues, ornamental fountains and many more.
Since it is greatly resistant to weathering, extensive use of the stone
has been found in paving as well. It has been found that the stone is also used
grindstones for sharpening objects because of their uniform grain size and of
their friable structure.
Occurrences of
sandstone weathering in ancient buildings
It is a common knowledge that
materials deteriorate over time by the process of weathering. Even though
sandstone is resistant to weathering largely yet it is vulnerable to the perils
of time. Weathering in sandstone is noticed in many ancient structures like
Petra of Jordan, Machu Pichu of Peru, Coliseum of Rome and many more. The reasons of the decline can be broadly
divided into two basic parts:
· Natural:
The natural factors in weathering of the stone have to consider many aspects
like intrinsic and extrinsic influences. While the intrinsic influences include
factors that are inherent to the stone like molecular composition, hardness as
well as fracturing, the extrinsic one constitutes the external influences that
are induced by natural causes like abrasion, moisture and temperature.
· Fabricated:
The main cause that leads to fabricated weathering in the stone is human
induced abrasion. The visitors who tend to visit the stone structures by
touching, walking and climbing them are the primary reasons for their decay.
Moreover, many of the individuals often scratch out their names upon these
structures thereby making the structures more vulnerable to weathering and
eventual decay. Such human influences can take a heavy toll on the cultural and
historic heritage of the buildings where they visit.
The study of stone weathering
therefore requires some other knowledge as well like climatology and weather
studies, mineralogy, architectural history of the building along with the
construction techniques that has been used and the land use on both local as
well as regional level.
