Aged Hochmoderne in Architecture and Monument Preservation - Analysis of construction and material, development of maintenance strategies and repair materials for reinforced concrete structures under engineering and monument conservation aspects.

• Applicants: Dr. Michael Auras; Professor Dr.-Ing. Christoph Duppel; Professor Dr. Bernhard Middendorf; Professorin Dr.-Ing. Jeanette Orlowsky
• Subject Area: Architecture, Building and Construction History, Construction Research, Sustainable Building Technology ; Construction Material Sciences, Chemistry, Building Physics
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 442248057

The development of building constructions of the epoch Hochmoderne goes hand in hand with various material developments. Building construction, building technology and building material are inseparably linked, especially in reinforced concrete construction. The project team from the fields of monument preservation, building construction and materials science is planning to investigate the building constructions, building technology and building materials of four reinforced concrete structures of cultural and historical significance and to develop object-specific preservation and maintenance strategies.Several main objectives are pursued in the proposed project. In the first step, the building constructions, the building materials and protection systems used on the model objects will be recorded, with special consideration given to their structural, architectural and monument conservation features in the context of their time of origin. In order to deal with historical concrete repairs, a method laboratory for recording the actual conditions will be developed in cooperation with other SPP working groups. The project focuses on mainly non-destructive analysis methods; e.g. NMR measurement technology, georadar and drone technology. In a second step, in coordination with the respective building owners, monument conservators and planners involved, the monument conservation, technical-historical, structural and material assessments will be combined. In the interdisciplinary team, the results are used to develop requirement profiles for the repair and maintenance measures for each specific building. The third step is the development of methods and materials for the preservation of concrete structures and surfaces. Using innovative concrete technology approaches, microstructure optimized high performance concretes with textile reinforcement are developed for substance-saving repair. In addition, commercially available hydrophobic agents are being tested to protect surfaces. Great importance is attached to the preservation or, if necessary, replication of the original concrete surfaces including their factory traces and material visibility, as well as to the static strengthening and long-term observation.On the basis of the object processing and in exchange with other working groups concerned with concrete structures in the priority program, general strategies for dealing with concrete structures of the epoch Hochmoderne will be formulated.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 2255: Construction as cultural heritage - Principles for engineering-based and interlinked conservation strategies for the built heritage of the high modern era.