PAINÉIS DECORATIVOS TRANSLÚCIDOS E ILUMINANTES DE ESCAIOLA E STUCCO-DURO

The proposed research work has, as object of study, the translucent and illuminated panels performance, based on binders like white cement or non-hydraulic lime putty, using as aggregates natural stone waste sludge like lime or marble dust, besides the brick dust and the sands, with the incorporation of optical glass fibres. Those studies, have as objective, to contribute to de research development on ecological mortars, and in this way, protect natural resources consumed by concrete industry, improve white cement and lime putty based mortars design to apply in Contemporaneous Architecture and save electric energy. The present study tries to investigate the already existent translucent concrete, approaching to the ancient stucco-duro and scagliola, of great aesthetic quality and durability, resembling to the polished, veined and coloured marble, but translucent to the natural light and illuminating. The panels, owing to their structural capacity, can be used outside as thin panels, translucent to the natural light, in walls or roofs and, already, inside the buildings, as illuminating partition walls, pavements and ceilings. The optical glass fibres confer to material the propriety of being crossed by light, whatever the thickness of the material where they are incorporated, higher mechanic and fire resistance and allow create structural panels of thin thickness. The fibres can be lighted by LED illumination with a thermic device which controls high temperatures. The “side-glow” optical glass fibres with transparent protection PVC sheet, when illuminated, produce a luminous effect which can be seen through a thin mortar layer. Owing to their characteristics, the light emitting diodes (LEDs) will be an important future light source. Inclusively, the high power light emitting diodes (HP-LED) are more adequate as a low energetic consumption alternative to the traditional illumination used in florescent-lamps or glow-lamps. Historic durable coating systems are sources of skill knowledge which can be reactivated in contemporaneous building construction, contributing to diversify and optimize the design of lime, gypsum, pozzuolana and white cement based mortars. Lime putty based mortars, which aggregate fines in high proportion, has especial interest, because they are closer to the historical mortars, prescribed in the old treatises of construction, of higher durability. The panels in contact with humidity must include pozzolanic material, with good resistance to water. It will be analysed the influence of fines in different mixtures with the follow binding systems: lime putty: lime putty and gypsum; lime putty and pozzuolana; lime putty, pozzuolana and brick dust; lime putty, pozzuolana and white Portland concrete. The ratio binder/aggregate will be of two kinds: 1) with the same proportion to all the mortars; 2) with the ratio recommended by the ancient authors. It will be developed an experimental study on renders and plaster mortars reconstituted from the technical literature, based on white cement, lime or gypsum, to use in the production of panels.Those ones will be submitted to laboratorial tests like: The water to binder ratio and workability, measured by flow table; shrinkage; bulk density; Dynamic E-Modulus, Flexural and Compressive Strength; Water Absorption (Under Water and Capillary Suction). It will be investigate the mechanical performance and of durability (namely the resistance to water action) and the decorative potential of optical glass fibres incorporated in the eco-mortars, to produce translucent panels to use in contemporary architecture. This research make possible: to demonstrate the sustainability of traditional practices which are sources of skill knowledge of building construction and the potentialities of natural stone waste sludge as admixtures and fine aggregates to produce mortars with good performance in mechanical terms and to water infiltrations; to avoid the use of fine aggregates as river sand which leads to the destruction of water-lines; to know the differences between traditional practices and contemporaneous industrial productions, to investigate their performance and to continue in their optimization; on the other hand, the panels with the incorporation of optical glass fibres and LEDs permit to constitute a decorative and illuminating solution of low energetic consumption, which will revolutionize the building construction.