Nondestructive testing and assessment of consolidation effects of earthen sites

Earthen sites are widely distributed throughout China, and most of them belong to archaeological sites with significant values, which not only directly witness the origin, formation and development of Chinese civilization, but also possess important values for conservation and exhibition. Many researches and practices on their conservation and consolidation have been carried out; however, the consolidation effect is mainly judged by visual observation and expert evaluation. Scientific assessment of conservation and consolidation effects is a challenging issue. Many instruments in other fields cannot be directly applied to the conservation of cultural relics due to their peculiarity. In order to assess the effects of field conservation experiments, this paper tries to understand the consolidation effects at Liangzhu site using nondestructive or micro-damage methods, including thermo-physical parameters testing, infrared thermal imaging, high-density microelectrode resistivity testing, portable microscope observation, and hydrophilic and hydrophobic testing, and thereby explores the practicable methods for evaluating the properties of consolidation materials for earthen sites treatment.