UCLA

Culturally significant monuments made of weathered siliceous stone often display sub-surface condition issues such as cracks and voids. These issues require grouts that are ideally compatible with the composition and properties of the substrate. Based on the successful application of ethyl silicates as consolidants in recent literature, this study examines possible formulation pathways for the development of a grout incorporating ethyl silicate. Tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS), dibutyltin dilaurate (DBTL) as a catalyst, silicone oil (PDMS), various grades of ground quartz, sepiolite, and hollow glass spheres were used in differing concentrations to create samples. These were visually and physically assessed on workability, separation, shrinkage, cracking, strength, and flexibility. Quantitative analysis was performed on selected formulations using UV-Vis-NIR reflectance spectroscopy in coordination with a weight loss experiment to investigate kinetics, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Successful formulations tended to include oligomeric TEOS, crushed quartz of mixed grades, sepiolite powder, and PDMS, and show promise for future investigations.