SPECIAL ISSUE
Physical weathering of building stones induced by freeze–thaw
action: a laboratory long-term study
J. Ruedrich • D. Kirchner • S. Siegesmund
Received: 14 July 2010 / Accepted: 29 October 2010 / Published online: 21 November 2010
 The Author(s) 2010. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com
Abstract Damages to natural building stones induced by
the action of frost are considered to be of great importance.
Commonly, the frost resistance of building stones is
checked by standardised freeze–thaw tests before using.
Corresponding tests normally involve 30–50 freeze–thaw
action cycles. In order to verify the significance of such
measurements, we performed long-term tests on four
selected rocks over 1,400 freeze–thaw action cycles.
Additionally, numerous petrophysical parameters were
analysed to compare the behaviour of rocks in the weath-
ering tests according to the current explanatory models of
stress formation by growing ice crystals in the pore space.
The long-term tests yield more information about the real
frost sensibility of the rocks. A clear deterioration cannot
be determined in most cases until 50 weathering cycles
have been completed. In the freeze–thaw tests, the samples
are also stressed by changing temperature and moisture,
indicating that different decay mechanisms can interfere
with each other. Thus, thermohygric and moisture expan-
sion are important damage processes.
Keywords Freeze–thaw action  Natural building stones 
Microfabric  Pore space properties
Introduction
Frost weathering was discussed as a major physical dete-
rioration process. Alternating freeze and thaw cycles are
probably responsible for most damages in natural building
stones during the winter. Numerous freeze–thaw cycles can
occur in Central Europe (e.g. in Munich, Germany some-
times over 30 per year).
The causes of ice formation from a solution are widely
known. Ice crystallisation processes can be divided into the
mechanisms of nucleation and crystal growth. Amongst
normal atmospheric conditions, pure water freezes at the
0C transition. In contrast, water crystallises mostly at a
lower temperature than 0C in porous rocks. The cause can
be a super-cooling or a decrease of the freezing point of the
fluid. Super-cooling will be generated by the lack of suf-
ficient nuclei (Chahall and Miller 1965). Since in natural
stones enough nuclei in the form of crystal surfaces are
available, heterogeneous nucleation can be assumed, and
thus, only slight super-cooling takes place (Snethlage
1984). In the case of the freeze point reduction, the equi-
librium conditions of the fluid have changed. The cause for
this could be specific water salinities, which often occurs at
buildings. However, the main cause for the freeze point
reduction in natural building stones is the pore space dis-
tribution. The smaller the pore, the stronger the water is
strained, and therefore freezing at increasingly lower
temperatures results. Since natural building stones show a
wide range of pore sizes (Fitzner and Snethlage 1982), a
heterogeneous crystallisation occurs during cooling.
Whereas in larger pores water is already crystallised, the
water in smaller pores can still be in a liquid state. Of
crucial importance are also further pore space properties
such as the shape (Hirschwald 1908) and the interconnec-
tion of pores (Stockhausen 1981; Weiss 1992).
J. Ruedrich (&)  S. Siegesmund
Department of Structural Geology and Geodynamics,
Geoscience Centre, University of Goettingen,
Goldschmidtstr. 3, 37077 Goettingen, Germany
e-mail: jruedri@gwdg.de
D. Kirchner
German Mining Museum, Am Bergbaumuseum 28,
44791 Bochum, Germany
123
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
DOI 10.1007/s12665-010-0826-6
The mechanism whereby ice crystallisation generates
stresses within the rock fabric is still under discussion. For
a long time, the volumetric expansion of pore water upon
freezing (9 vol.% under atmospheric conditions; Hirsch-
wald 1908) was held responsible for the formation of stress
within the rock fabric. However, many observations con-
tradict this supposition (e.g. Walder and Hallet 1985).
Many authors support the theory that the movement of
water from smaller pores or unfrozen areas to growing ice
crystals in larger pores lead to the formation of stresses by
capillary (Everett 1961) and hydraulic (Powers and Hel-
muth 1953; Setzer 1999) pressures. Furthermore, the linear
growth pressure, introduced by Correns and Steinborn
(1939), was discussed as the main process of stress
development within the rock fabric (Scherer 1999; Steiger
2005; Ruedrich and Siegesmund 2007). Hence, the basic
precondition for the development of damages due to frost
action is that the stresses induced by ice crystallisation
exceed the strength of the rock (Winkler 1968).
To check the frost resistance of building materials,
standard freeze–thaw tests are used. The samples are
cyclically loaded by cooling in a freezer and thawing in
warm water. After a certain number of cycles, the sample
changes were checked by measuring the loss of weight and
noting the presence of any macroscopic damages. Due to
economic reasons, only a few freeze–thaw cycles were
performed. In many cases, the investigations lead to the
conclusion that frost action tests activate the main rock
discontinuities, like pre-existing cracks (e.g. partially
mineralised) or the sedimentary bedding (e.g. Nicholson
and Nicholson 2000; Thomachot and Jeanette 2002). Based
on this conclusion, many authors do not attach great
importance to the total fabric decay by frost action
processes.
In order to verify the significance of such tests, long-
term investigations were carried out. This work presents
the results on four different actual building stones: a
limestone from Kuaker, a porphyry from Lobejuen, a
granite from Knaupsholz and a tuff from Habichtswald. All
the mining sites are located in Germany. These rocks are
part of a comprehensive investigation programme using
more than 20 different rock types. The present work shows
the first results of this research. The rocks were chosen
because of their different behaviours in the freeze–thaw
tests. The rock samples were subjected to 1,400 freeze–
thaw cycles. To acquire more information about the
dependence of weathering on the rock fabric, the results
were compared with different petrophysical properties. For
this purpose, the pore space properties (porosity and pore
radii distribution), the water transport and restore proper-
ties (capillary water uptake, water diffusion resistance and
saturation degree), the tensile strength and the moisture as
well as thermal expansion properties were investigated.
Additionally, length change measurements during freezing
under dry and water-saturated conditions were performed
to acquire more information about the damage mechanisms
of single freeze–thaw cycles. Length change measurements
are a useful tool for this purpose (Thomachot and Mats-
uoka 2007).
Investigated rocks
Fabric properties
The Kuaker Kernstein (Fig. 1a) is a biogenic limestone
from the lower Triassic (Bavaria, Germany) and can be
classified as floatstone. The mineralogical composition is
dominated by calcite between 92 and 98%. Accessory clay
minerals and iron oxide as well as hydroxide minerals
occur. The limestone shows a clear bedding of alternating
shell-rich and matrix-dominated layers. Sparitic grain
fabrics are common in the shell-rich layers (Fig. 2a). The
shell fragments are made of sparitic grains which are
covered with a micritic margin. Shell fragments can reach
sizes up to several millimetres. The cement, which pref-
erentially fills the pore spaces of the shell fragments, also
exhibits sparitic grain sizes between 160 and 400 lm. This
cementation leads to a strong reduction of the pore space.
In sparitic areas, the calcite crystals typically show
polygonal grain shapes with more or less straight grain
boundaries. Fe- and Mn-covers or crusts at grain bound-
aries are often observable in the shell-rich layers. They
cause the yellow brown colour in these areas. The matrix-
dominated layers of the limestone are rarer and are made of
a very fine-grained micritic fabric.
The rock from Lobejuen is rhyolitic in composition and
characterised by a typical porphyritic fabric (Fig. 1b). The
age of this volcanic rock is dated at the boundary of the
Upper Carboniferous and Lower Permian. The rock forms
part of a volcanic complex near Halle (Saxony-Anhalt,
Germany). In the fine-grained red matrix idiomorphic
crystals of plagioclase, alkali feldspar and quartz are
common (Fig. 2b). The fine-grained matrix consists pre-
dominantly of quartz and subordinated alkali feldspar.
Accessory biotite and chlorite also occur. The grain sizes
of the matrix minerals are less than 50 lm. The porphyritic
minerals achieve grain sizes up to 20 mm. Microscopi-
cally, the feldspar inclusions often show sericitic alteration.
Commonly, quartz shows idiomorphic to hypidiomorphic
single crystal shapes, but it also occurs as polycrystalline
quartz aggregates. Biotite is often altered to chlorite.
Haematite appears as a finely dispersed pigment in the
matrix, which causes the red colour of the rock.
The Miocene volcanic rock from Habichtswald (Hessen,
Germany) represents a lapilli tuff of basaltic composition
1574 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
123
(Fig. 1c). The lapilli fragments with sizes between 0.5 and
15 mm are embedded in a fine-grained and partly hyaline
groundmass (Fig. 2c). In this heterogeneous matrix,
pyroxene and olivine are dominant, and subordinated bio-
tite and hornblende occur. The lapillus consists of highly
porous solidified lava fragments or pumice. The shapes of
the fragments are mostly polygonal and partly rounded.
Subordinate xenolithic enclosures of predominantly red
sandstone also occur. The pore space is very heteroge-
neous. Beside macroscopic pores in the range of millime-
tres also micropores in the heterogeneous fine-grained
matrix occur.
The rock from Knaupsholz (Harz Mountains, Saxony-
Anhalt, Germany) is a slight to medium altered granite
Fig. 1 Macrofabrics of the investigated rocks: a Kuaker limestone, b Lobejuen porphyry, c Habichtswald tuff and d Knaupsholz granite
Fig. 2 Microfabrics of the investigated rocks (crossed polariser): a sparitic fabric of the Kuaker limestone, b Lobejuen porphyry, c lapillus in a
hyaline matrix of the Habichtswald tuff and d quartz area of the Knaupsholz granite
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586 1575
123
showing a greyish red colour (Fig. 1d). This plutonic rock
is dated as Upper Carboniferous, which corresponds to the
end of the Variscan orogeny. Microscopically, the rock
shows a granular grain fabric (Fig. 2d). The grain size of
the coarser fraction is about 0.5 cm. The main mineral
phases of the rock are 55% feldspar, about 40% quartz and
5% biotite. Accessory magnetite and zircon are observable.
The feldspar minerals are partly characterised by a strong
sericitisation. Biotite is commonly altered to chlorite.
Polycrystalline aggregates of quartz often show deteriora-
tion by inter- and intragranular microcracks.
Petrophysical properties
The mineralogical composition and fabric determine the
petrophysical properties of the rocks. Due to the pro-
nounced fabric differences of the investigated rocks, their
petrophysical properties also vary greatly. Except for the
pore space investigations, all petrophysical analyses were
performed in three orthogonal directions. A reference
coordinate system, with respect to the macroscopically
visible elements of foliation and lineation, was chosen. The
XY-plane marks a foliation or sedimentary bedding, while
the X-direction is parallel to the lineation (if present). An
arbitrary coordinate system was defined if the specimens
did not show the respective macroscopically visible fabric
elements.
To characterise the total accessible porosity (U), mea-
surements of hydrostatic weighting were performed on
sample cubes (65 9 65 9 65 mm). The dry (mdry), the
saturated (msat) and the hydrostatic mass (mhydro) of the
saturated samples were determined. Total water saturation
was obtained by using a vacuum. Porosity was calculated by
U = msat - mdry/msat - mhydro 9 100. The investigated
samples show a wide range of porosity, caused by their
different geological origins. They vary between 1.83% for
the Knaupsholz Granite and 20.87% for the Habichts-
wald Tuff (Table 1). From the mass values, the bulk
(qbulk = mdry/msat - mhydro) and particle density (qparticle =
mdry/mdry - mhydro) was also calculated (Table 1). The
particle densities correlate with the densities of the
dominant minerals in the respective rock. The rocks from
Lobejuen and Knaupsholz exhibit densities between 2.63
and 2.64 g cm-3 which is more or less the mineral density
of quartz and feldspar. The Habichtswald rock shows a
high particle density caused by the high amount of mafic
minerals. The highest particle density of 2.75 g cm-3 was
observed in the Kuaker limestone, which is higher than the
mineral density of calcite (2.72 g cm-3). The reason for
this could be a certain fraction of dolomite (2.87 g cm-3)
or the influence of the clay mineral content. The Kuaker
limestone also shows the highest bulk density. The lowest
bulk density is detectable in the Habichtswald rock and is
caused by its high porosity.
The pore size distribution of the rocks was determined
by using mercury porosimetry (van Brakel et al. 1981). The
investigations were carried out with pressures up to 2 kbar,
which allows the evaluation of pore radii of about
0.005 lm. At least three specimens ([ 12.5 9 20.0 mm)
of every rock type were analysed. The results show com-
parable distributions for the respective rock type. The data
in Table 1 represent results of single measurements.
The investigated rocks show a broad spectrum of pore
radii distributions (Table 1). All samples are characterised
by a large amount of micropores below 0.10 lm. Based on
this, the average pore radius is also equal or lower than
0.11 lm (Table 1).
In order to constrain the directional dependence of
capillary water absorption analysis, the sample cubes
(65 9 65 9 65 mm) were cut according to the three
principal directions (X, Y, Z) of the reference coordinate
system. Thus, directionally dependent measurements could
be detected on one sample. The specimens were dipped
into about 0.3 cm of water. For data acquisition, an un-
derfloor scale was used with digital recording of the weight
increase (mcap) every minute. The water absorption coef-
ficient (w-value) was calculated from the weight increase
per unit area versus the square root of the time (w-
value = mcap A
-1 t-1/2). The w-value of the investigated
rocks varies between 0.17 kg m-2 h-1/2 for the Z-direction
of the Lobejuen porphyry and 2.49 kg m-2 h-1/2 parallel
to the X-direction of the Habichtswald Tuff (Table 2).
The water vapour diffusion resistance value (l) of the
sandstones was studied using the wet-cup method
Table 1 Pore space and density properties of the investigated rocks in non-weathered condition
Rock type Porosity
(vol.%)
Bulk density
(g cm-3)
Particle density
(g cm-3)
Average pore
radius (lm)
Pore radii distribution (%)
0.001–0.01
(lm)
0.01–0.1
(lm)
0.1–1
(lm)
1–10
(lm)
[10
(lm)
Kuaker 3.73 2.68 2.75 0.050 23.2 44.2 22.8 7.6 2.2
Lobejuen 4.52 2.52 2.64 0.040 12.0 73.3 10.7 2.7 1.3
Habichtswald 20.87 2.14 2.71 0.033 53.3 18.9 14.6 7.2 6.0
Knaupsholz 1.83 2.58 2.63 0.108 10.9 39.6 34.7 14.8 0.0
1576 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
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(Poschlod 1989) on disc-shaped samples ([ 40 9 10 mm).
l characterises the diffusion resistance of a porous material
compared to an equally dimensioned inactive air film.
Slices of the stones were attached as covers on Teflon cups.
The relative humidity on the outside and inside of the cups
was different. This causes moisture to flow through the
porous material from the side with higher (inside 100%) to
the side with lower relative humidity (outside 50%). The
moisture flow was obtained by weighing the cups at vari-
ous times. Besides capillary absorption, the diffusion of
water vapour is the second most important water transport
mechanism in porous materials. The non-dimensional
water vapour diffusion resistance value (l), which is nor-
mally used to describe the measure of water vapour dif-
fusion, is lowest for the Habichtswald rock with 17.41
parallel to the Y-direction. In contrast, the limestone from
Kuaker shows the highest vapour diffusion resistance with
449.21 perpendicular to the bedding (Table 2).
The water saturation degree (S-value) describes the
voluntary water absorption of a rock under atmospheric
conditions. The measurements were carried out on the same
cubic samples as those used for porosity measurements. The
S-value was determined by dipping the samples in water for
24 h. Afterwards, the samples were totally immersed for
another 24 h. The S-value is for most of the investigated
rocks medium between 0.72 and 0.81. Only the saturation
degree of the Habichtswald Tuff with 0.84 nearly reaches
the critical value of 0.90 (Hirschwald 1908). This critical
value arises from the fact that the volume expansion
induced by the phase transition from water to ice is around
9 vol.% under atmospheric conditions. Based on this, a
porous rock with more than 91% water content could sus-
tain direct frost damage. Thus, rocks with a saturation
degree of voluntary water absorption of more than 90%
(S-value of 0.9) should be extremely vulnerable to frost
action (Hirschwald 1908).
The tensile strength (rz) was determined by means of
the ‘‘Brazilian test’’, which involves disc-shaped specimens
([ 40 9 20 mm). In order to calculate the average value, a
minimum of four samples was used. A constant strain rate
of 0.3 9 10-6 mm s-1 (&10-5 s-1) was applied. The
tensile strength was measured perpendicular to the XY-,
XZ- and YZ-planes. The resistance of rocks against tensile
stresses is an important parameter for frost weathering
processes because the induced stresses by crystallisation
have to exceed the tensile strength before damage occurs.
The tensile strength varies for the different rock types
between 2.16 N mm-2 perpendicular to the YZ-plane for
the Habichtswald Tuff and 11.86 N mm-2 perpendicular to
the same direction for the Lobejuen rock (Table 3).
The thermal expansion behaviour was measured on
cylindrical samples ([ 15 9 50 mm). The directional
dependence of the thermal expansion was determined as a
function of temperature using a dilatometer with six mea-
suring sets. The final displacement resolution was better
than 1 lm. Samples were subjected to a thermal heating
cycle from 20 up to 90C and back to the initial temper-
ature. From the experimentally determined temperature
and dilatation data, the coefficient of thermal expansion
was calculated using the relation a = Dl/l 9 DT. Further-
more, the residual strain was determined after the heating
cycle. For a detailed description of the experimental setup
refer to Koch and Siegesmund (2001). The thermal
expansion coefficient a expresses the expansion of a
material as a function of temperature. The rocks from
Habichtswald and Knaupsholz show relatively low thermal
expansion coefficients with an average value of around
7.2 9 10-6 K-1 (Table 4). The highest value is observable
for the rock from Lobejuen with an average value of
8.5 9 10-6 K-1. The Kuaker limestone exhibits a medium
Table 2 Moisture transport and restore properties of the investigated rocks in non-weathered condition (anisotropy calculated with A = nmax -
nmin/nmax 9 100)
Rock type w-value (kg m-2 h-1/2) A (%) l-value A (%) S-value
X Y Z X Y Z
Kuaker 0.35 0.25 0.20 42.9 277.87 147.19 449.21 67.2 0.71
Lobejuen 0.19 0.19 0.17 10.5 98.76 92.37 104.86 11.9 0.81
Habichtswald 2.49 2.32 1.99 20.1 20.25 17.41 19.87 14.0 0.84
Knaupsholz 0.39 0.34 0.39 12.8 146.49 172.66 141.91 17.8 0.78
Table 3 Tensile strength of the investigated rocks in non-weathered
condition
Rock type Tensile strength
\XY
(N mm-2)
\XZ
(N mm-2)
\YZ
(N mm-2)
A (%)
Kuacker 5.27 5.73 5.53 8.3
Lobejuen 8.65 10.69 11.86 27.1
Habichtswald 2.52 3.28 2.16 34.2
Knaupsholz 4.81 6.07 5.73 20.8
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586 1577
123
value of around 7.6 9 10-6 K-1. This material shows the
highest anisotropy of the thermal expansion coefficient
with a value of 19% for the investigated rocks (Table 4).
After one heating cycle, the Kuaker limestone shows a
pronounced residual strain of 0.04 mm m-1. This behav-
iour is evidence for a thermal deterioration due to micro-
cracking. For the other rocks, no residual strain is detect-
able after thermal heating.
The moisture expansion of the rocks was determined on
cylindrical samples ([ 20 9 50 mm), which were pre-
conditioned at 30% relative humidity and room tempera-
ture. Afterwards, the samples were completely immersed in
distilled water. The accuracy of the displacement trans-
ducer is 1.0 lm. The investigations were carried out on
samples parallel to the X-, Y- and Z-directions. For the
investigated samples, large differences of moisture
expansion were observable (Table 4). Whereas the lime-
stone from Kuaker shows no swelling, the samples from
Lobejuen and Habichtswald exhibit a slight medium
moisture expansion between 0.06 and 0.15 mm m-1. Only
the Knaupsholz Granite showed a remarkably large
swelling of 0.30 mm m-1 parallel to the Y-direction. This
phenomenon is possibly caused by the medium alteration
of this rock with the formation of cracks and clay minerals.
Freeze–thaw weathering tests
In order to verify the sensitiveness of the rocks against
freezing, freeze–thaw tests were performed in the labora-
tory. Rock prisms with a dimension of 40 9 40 9 160 mm
were tested. Two specimens were examined for each rock
type, which show comparable behaviour. The examination
of material deterioration was carried out by measurements of
the rod waves (Rentsch and Krompholz 1961). This method
allows the evaluation of the compressional wave velocities
(Vp) and the dynamic Young’s modulus (dE). The mea-
surements were carried out parallel to the long axis of the
sample perpendicular to the bedding/foliation (Z-direction).
Furthermore, the sample weight was measured. For one test
cycle, the samples were first immersed in water at a tem-
perature of 20C for 2 h. Afterwards, the samples were
stored in a special freezer at -20C for 16 h. In total, the
samples were subjected to 1,400 freeze–thaw cycles. The
measurements of material changes were carried out after
every 5th cycle until the 350th freeze–thaw cycle was
reached, and afterwards every 10th cycle. For this, the
samples were dried to weight constancy at 60C in a drying
chamber. Different patterns for the loss of weight and the
change of elastic properties are observable, whereas the Vp
and Young’s modulus generally show a comparable
behaviour (Fig. 3). The damage phenomena of the loaded
samples are quite different (Fig. 4).
For the Kuaker Limestone, only slight changes of weight
are observable (Fig. 3a–c). After 1,400 cycles, only 1%
loss in weight was detectable. In contrast, the sample
exhibits a large and still consistent decrease of Vp and the
Young’s modulus. Vp is reduced primarily from 5.8 to
2.4 km s-1. The Young’s modulus decreased from a value
near 60 to 10 kN mm-2. Damages of the sample are lar-
gely lacking, which correlates with the constant weight.
Only a distinct macroscopic crack shows progressive
opening (Fig. 4a).
The sample from Lobejuen stays more or less unaffected
during the freeze–thaw test (Fig. 3d–f). Only the elastic
properties show a slight decrease, which is more pro-
nounced in the first 50 freeze–thaw cycles. For the whole
test run, only a reduction of the Young’s modulus from 55
to 44 kN mm-2 could be determined. Even after 1,400
freeze–thaw cycles, no macroscopic damage occurs
(Fig. 4b).
In contrast to the other samples, the tuff from Habi-
chtswald shows a strong loss of material (Fig. 3g–i). At the
1,055th freeze–thaw cycle, the sample collapsed. Up to this
cycle, the loss of weight amounts to about 7% of its initial
value. The Vp values decrease around 50%. The Young’s
modulus is relatively low in this sample and has a value of
9 kN mm-2. This is caused by the highly porous fabric. It
decreases close to 0 kN mm-2 up to the break down cycle
of the sample. The decrease of the Young’s modulus as
Table 4 Thermal expansion coefficients (a) and the residual strain of one heating cycle (20C–90C–20C) as well as the hygric expansion of
the investigated rocks in non-weathered condition
Rock type Thermal dilatation Hygric expansion
X (10-6 K-1) Y (10-6 K-1) Z (10-6 K-1) A (%) Residual strain
(mm m-1)
X (mm m-1) Y (mm m-1) Z (mm m-1) A (%)
Kuacker 6.64 7.91 8.20 19.0 0.04 n.d. n.d. n.d. –
Lobejuen 8.57 7.93 9.02 12.1 n.d. 0.06 0.07 0.06 14.3
Habichtswald 7.43 6.95 7.19 6.5 n.d. 0.12 0.15 0.12 20.0
Knaupsholz 6.92 – 7.49 7.6 n.d. 0.26 0.30 0.19 36.7
n.d. not detectable
1578 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
123
well as Vp is strong during the first 100 cycles. In the
following freeze–thaw cycles, the decrease of Vp is mod-
erate to slight. The tuff shows a strong decay in the form of
local breakouts and a crumbling of lapilli fragments
(Fig. 4c).
The Knaupsholz Granite shows a different pattern of the
measured parameters during the test (Fig. 3j–l). Whereas
the weight is more or less constant over the complete test
runs, the elastic values show a downgrade. Vp is reduced
from 3.5 down to 2.1 km s-1. The Young’s modulus shows
Fig. 3 Results of the standard freeze–thaw test: a, d, g, j loss of weight; b, e, h, k changes of Vp; c, f, i, l changes of the Young’s modulus
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586 1579
123
a decrease from about 29 to 8 kN mm-2. For both elastic
values, the strongest surge is observable until the 100th
freeze–thaw cycle. For the subsequent cycles, only a slight
decrease is measurable. Macroscopically, the loaded sam-
ple only shows marginal damages in the form of a sugar-
like crumbling of single crystals along the specimen edges
(Fig. 4d).
Length change induced by freeze–thaw action
To provide detailed information about the weathering
mechanisms of ice crystallisation within the pore space,
simultaneous length change measurements during frost
action were applied. The measurements were carried out in
a specially designed dilatometer (Fig. 5). The length
change behaviour was determined on cylindrical specimens
([ 15 9 100 mm) in two fabric directions: parallel (X-
direction) and perpendicular (Z-direction) to the bedding.
To avoid moisture changes within the samples, the speci-
mens were sealed with foil during the experiments. A
reference sample was used to detect the sample tempera-
ture. The samples were measured for the experiments in
three dry cycles followed by ten cycles under water-satu-
rated conditions. In Fig. 6, the first dry and the first wet
cycle are shown. Solution absorption during a wet sample
condition takes place through capillary water uptake over
24 h. The specimens were cooled from 20 down to -20C
and heated back to the initial temperature. The temperature
steps were held for 6 h each, respectively. The test was
carried out with a cooling rate of 0.5C/min. Due to the
different measuring setup between the length change and
the freeze–thaw tests, the comparability of the results is
limited.
Under dry conditions, the samples show a more or less
linear length change when cooling to -20C as well as
during subsequent heating up to 20C (Fig. 6e–h). After
returning to the initial temperature, no residual strain
develops, and thus, no damage occurs. The length change
behaviour by cooling of water-saturated specimens differs
to that of the dry samples. For this purpose, three phe-
nomena are distinguishable:
Fig. 4 Damage phenomena
after 1,400 freeze–thaw tests:
a distinct crack growth of the
Kuaker sample, b no damages
are observable for the Lobejuen
porphyry, c strong loss of
material of the Habichtswald
sample and d slight sugar-like
crumbling at the edges of the
Knaupsholz specimen
Fig. 5 Dilatometer with
climate controlled sample box
for the length change
measurements of porous solids
during frost action
1580 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
123
1. The differences of intensity between the dry and the
wet length change path are a measure of the mechan-
ical stresses within the rock fabric induced by ice
crystallisation.
2. The general length change pattern provides informa-
tion about the interaction between the crystallisation
processes and the rock fabric.
3. The residual strain is a dimension of crack growth and
thus of the fabric decay.
The length change modification is different for the rock
samples investigated. The rock from Kuaker only exhibits a
slight length change, whereas the rocks from Lobejuen,
Habichtswald and Knaupsholz show a strong modification
Fig. 6 Pore radii distribution and length change during freeze–thaw action of samples parallel (X) and perpendicular (Z) to the bedding/foliation:
a, c dry and b, d water-saturated condition of the samples from a, e, i Kuaker, b, f, j Lobejuen, c, g, k Habichtswald and d, h, l Knaupsholz
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586 1581
123
of length change between dry and capillary water-saturated
conditions (Fig. 6e–l). This is a first indication that ice
crystallisation in pore spaces of the latter samples lead to
stronger stresses in the rock fabric.
Concerning the pattern of length change for all samples,
a general contraction of samples is observed during cooling
with a slight expansion at about -4C. The expansion
phenomenon may be traced back to an initial ice crystal-
lisation within the pore space. During subsequent cooling
of the samples, two totally different phenomena are
observable, which are best discernable for the samples
from Habichtswald and Knaupsholz. The Habichtswald
Tuff shows a slight contraction between -8 and -18C. At
a temperature equilibration of about -19C, the tuff is
characterised by a strong decrease of length (Fig. 6k). This
‘‘frost shrinking’’ can be traced back to different processes,
which may overlie each other. First, a pressure solution of
exiting ice crystals by subsequent cooling occurs, and thus,
the inverse process of linear growth pressure develops
(Correns and Steinborn 1939). This effect can arise if the
supercooled water is more or less depleted (Ruedrich and
Siegesmund 2007). Furthermore, a buffering effect of the
temperature by the large amount of unfrozen water in this
sample could be a reason (about 20 vol.% porosity). The
further cooling of the sample can only take place until all
the water is frozen. The third cause may be a movement of
unfrozen water from small pores to ice crystals in larger
pores (Everett 1961). With the dewatering of small pores,
the swelling effect will be reduced, and the rock shows in
combination with the pressure solution of existing ice
crystals a shrinking (Ruedrich and Siegesmund 2007).
However, this length change pattern was cited in the lit-
erature for sandstones (Ruedrich and Siegesmund 2006),
and thus, this behaviour seems to be typical for materials
with higher porosities and complex pore shapes.
In contrast, the Knaupsholz Granite shows following the
length increase at -4C a further slight expansion during
subsequent cooling. During the temperature equilibration
phase at about -19C, a strong expansion occurs. This
length change pattern is also observable for the Lobejuen
Porphyry. For both rocks, microcracks should represent the
main pore space shapes. Thus, differences of the ice
crystallisation behaviour within the respective pore geom-
etries may be the cause for the different length change
patterns.
Also the residual strain after the freeze–thaw cycle
differs for the investigated rocks (Fig. 6i–l). Whereas the
sample from Kuaker returns to its initial length, the sam-
ples from Lobejuen and Habichtswald show a very slight
residual strain. Only the granite from Knaupsholz shows a
pronounced residual strain at achieving the initial temper-
ature. This partly contradicts the observations from the
freeze–thaw long-term test.
A pronounced anisotropy of length changes is only
observable for the rock from Kuaker. This directional
dependence may be caused by two specific effects. First,
the bedding of this sediment by the shape-preferred ori-
entation of grains or shell fragments as well as pores can
generate the observed anisotropy. Second, a preferred
crystallographic orientation (texture) of the calcite crystals
could also be the main reason.
Discussion
For the durability of natural building stones against ice
crystallisation processes, the solid body and the pore space
is especially important. The solid body is determined by its
structure and the interlocking of the crystals. These fabric
parameters control the resistance against stress develop-
ment in the pore space of the material. By its size, shape
and interconnection, the pore space controls the amount
and distribution of moisture in the rock body, and hence the
possibility of ice crystallisation from the solution.
Different mechanisms can contribute to the stress
development by ice crystallisation. On the one hand, there
is the pure volume expansion during the transition from
water to ice (Hirschwald 1908). On the other hand, the
linear growth pressure (Steiger 2005) can play an important
role, especially at lower water saturation degrees. Fur-
thermore, during crystallisation, water redistribution pro-
cesses in the pore space can also lead to increasing stresses
(Everett 1961; Setzer 1999).
The freeze–thaw tests show that an assessment of the
resistance of rocks against ice crystallisation in their pore
spaces is possible. But the evaluated data are also evi-
dences that more detailed information can only be deter-
mined by long-term measurements. For most of the
investigated stones, an early reaction of freeze–thaw action
is detectable. However, only after more than 50 freeze–
thaw cycles, there is a clear tendency of damage devel-
opment if the process leads to a total deterioration or only
to a slight reduction of the elastic properties.
When comparing the rock properties with their resis-
tance, and accordingly their sensibility in the freeze–thaw
test, some conclusions about the reasons and working
mechanisms can be drawn. According to the radius freeze
point relation after Stockhausen (1981), water should
freeze down to pore sizes larger than 0.006 lm at tem-
peratures of -20C. Thus, within our freeze–thaw test, the
water in almost all the pores of the investigated samples
could freeze, which is exemplarily shown in Fig. 7 for the
Habichtswald Tuff.
During the frost action test, the Kuaker Limestone
showed a slight decrease in weight but a strong decrease in
the Vp and the Young’s modulus. The porosity is low, and
1582 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
123
the tensile strength achieves a medium value for the
investigated rocks. The main pore size is about 0.01 lm
with a small amount of pores between 0.1 and 1.0 lm.
Thus, specific frost sensitivity cannot be expected from the
petrophysical properties. However, the strong decrease of
the compressional wave velocities is evidence for a pro-
nounced decohesion of the material along the microcracks.
A comparable behaviour is known for marbles during
weathering (Siegesmund et al. 2008). Calcite rocks are
known to exhibit a strong sensibility against changes in the
temperature. This is evidenced by the observed residual
strain of the Kuaker limestone from the thermal dilatation
experiments. Based on this, additional analyses of the
hydrothermal expansion behaviour were performed. These
tests were carried out at dry and wet sample conditions
comparable to a standard marble dilatation test (Sieges-
mund and Ruedrich 2008) only on samples of the Kuaker
limestone. Samples were cyclically heated from 20 up to
90C and back to the initial temperature. Five dry cycles
were followed by ten cycles under wet sample conditions.
The tests show that the Kuaker Limestone is characterised
by a pronounced sensibility against thermal expansion
processes, especially in wet conditions (Fig. 8). After only
five dry and ten wet heating cycles, the limestone sample
shows a pronounced residual strain up to 1.2 mm m-1.
This can be traced back to its partially sparitic fabric in
combination with a strong anisotropic dilatation behaviour
of the calcite single crystal. Calcite shows during heating a
positive dilatation parallel to the c-axis (a = 19.2 9
10-6 K-1), whereas the crystal contracts parallel to the
a-axis (a = -3.2 9 10-6 K-1; Fei 1995). This directional
dependence of dilatation leads to stresses within the fabric
during changing temperatures. The decay process is pro-
gressive, especially if water is present. Since the samples
are subjected to temperature and humidity changes in the
freeze–thaw test, the thermohygric decay processes should
also play an important role.
During the freeze–thaw test, the Lobejuen Quartz Por-
phyry shows no changes of weight and only a very slight
decrease of Vp and the Young’s modulus. Also in the
dilatation test, no significant residual strain occurs. Only
the differences of the length changes between dry and wet
sample conditions evidenced mechanical stresses. One
cause for the frost resistance of this material should be the
pore size distribution. The pore radii show a narrow spaced
range between 0.1 and 0.01 lm (Fig. 6b). Only a few pores
are above and below this range. This means that the entire
water in the pores will freeze in a more or less short
temperature range. Thus, only a very slight portion of the
unfrozen water in smaller pores can serve as a fluid res-
ervoir for further crystal growth in larger pores. Due to the
low porosity, the Lobejuen rock exhibits further a good
fabric cohesion. This is also shown by the high value of the
tensile strength. Therefore, this material exhibits a pro-
nounced resistance against stresses, which will be induced
by ice crystallisation processes within the rock fabric.
The tuff from Habichtswald represents the most sensi-
tive rock in the frost action test measured in this study. The
rock is characterised by a high porosity and a low tensile
strength. Moreover, the rock has a critical pore space dis-
tribution. Besides a large amount of micropores, the rock
also shows larger pores in the range above 1 lm (Fig. 6c).
In this case, water from small pores can diffuse towards
growing ice crystals in larger pores. Hence, if a high
amount of small pores are connected to larger pores, a
voluminous reservoir for growing ice crystals exists
Fig. 7 Radius freeze point relation after Stockhausen (1981)
Fig. 8 Length change during
heating of the Kuaker
Limestone: a first dry cycle,
b first wet cycle and
c increasing residual strain after
five dry and ten wet thermal
heating cycles
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586 1583
123
(Everett 1961). This mechanism is also defined by the
curve of the length change measurements. At equilibration
at about -19C, a successive contraction of the sample is
detectable. This frost shrinking can be traced back to a
reduction of moisture swelling in combination with pres-
sure solution of existing ice crystals. However, only a
slight residual strain occurs within this experiment.
The Knaupsholz Granite only exhibits a very slight loss
of weight during the freeze–thaw test. But a clear decrease
of Vp and of the Young’s modulus is detectable. The
granite represents a slight to medium weathered rock. This
is shown by the relatively high porosity of more than 1%.
Fresh granites exhibit an effective porosity at about 0.2%.
Furthermore, the rock shows a broad range of the pore radii
distribution (Fig. 6d). This is possibly the cause for the
length change behaviour during freezing of the water-sat-
urated sample. Water first crystallises in larger pores, and
enough unfrozen water in smaller pores is provided for
ongoing crystallisation. This results in a strong expansion
of the length change measurements, especially at about
-19C (Fig. 6l). By returning to the initial temperature, a
strong residual strain remains. Since the dilatation mea-
surements only shows one freeze–thaw cycle, the damage
of the material could only be caused by the long-term frost
action test.
Different weathering processes also superimpose each
other, which counts not only for the laboratory experiments
but also for nature. Since the different weathering pro-
cesses vary at the buildings and sculptures, the freeze–thaw
tests only indicate the weathering resistance of the rocks in
winter months to a limited extent.
For laboratory weathering tests, the general question is
to what extent the results can be transferred to the rocks
used for buildings. In this study, 1,400 freeze–thaw cycles
were performed. Using the climate of Munich, for example,
where an estimated 30 freeze–thaw cycles per year occur,
the frost weathering was simulated for a period of over
46 years. For the example of the Habichtswald Tuff, this
would mean that the material was strongly damaged after
35 years of exposure.
Besides the frequency of freeze–thaw cycles, the frost
intensity should also play an important role. The frost
intensity describes how long and to what extent the tem-
perature falls below the 0C transition. According Walder
and Hallet (1985), most of the damage potential can be
assumed for a temperature of -10C. However, this tem-
perature range is seldom reached in most areas of Central
Europe.
A further important parameter is the moisture content of
the rocks during freezing. In the tests, the freeze–thaw
resistance for capillary water-saturated samples were sim-
ulated. At buildings, wet freeze–thaw events are rare
because the rocks have to be moistened before freezing.
This may happen during driving rain or the melting of
snow above the 0C limit. For the area of Budapest,
(Hungary) about four wet freeze–thaw cycles actually
occur per year (Fig. 9, Grossi et al. 2007). With the
assumption that four freeze–thaw events having a high
damage potential attacks the Habichtswald tuff, the mate-
rial will exhibit a strong deterioration after 260 years.
When considering the importance of laboratory test
results for the resistance of the rocks, the relevance of
climatic change also increases. After calculations by Grossi
et al. (2007), many regions in Central Europe will show a
Fig. 9 Decadal means of wet frost events in the areas around central
England, Hungary and South East Greenland. a The numbers of
events tend to decrease. Pan-European maps of annual frequency of
wet-frost events for b base line period (1961–1990) and c far future
(2070–2099) modified after Grossi et al. (2007)
1584 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:1573–1586
123
decrease in the frequency of freeze–thaw events (Fig. 9).
However, in other areas which are characterised by long
permafrost phases in winter, e.g. northern Europe, the
frequency of freeze–thaw events will increase.
Conclusion
Freeze–thaw weathering of rocks is an important physical
decay process at buildings. The freeze–thaw action test
represents the standard method for evaluating the durability
of a rock against the stresses induced by ice crystallisation
in the pore spaces. The investigations in this work show
that the results of the freeze–thaw action test leads to a
comprehensive interpretation of the evaluated data, but
only when further methods and other weathering mecha-
nisms are taken into consideration. The following issues
should be accounted for:
• Rapid tests of less than 50 action cycles allows in most
cases only limited evidence about the real freeze–thaw
sensibility of a natural building stone.
• The pure acquisition of the weight change after the
freeze–thaw cycle is not sufficient to characterise the
real fabric decohesion.
• Measurements of the compressional wave velocities are
a useful tool for analysing the fabric decay during the
frost action test. The measurement of the Young’s
modulus provided no further information about the
damage process.
• For standard tests like the freeze–thaw action test, it is
necessary to consider other decay processes like the
moisture expansion or thermal dilatation, which can be
affected by the test and can represent the more effective
mechanism of material damaging during the weathering
simulation.
Acknowledgments We are grateful to Martina Behmenburg and
Marion Jung for their help in the performance of the tests. Our work
was supported by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt.
Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which per-
mits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any
medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited.
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