Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136

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Engineering Geology
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/enggeo

Effects of high temperature on physico-mechanical properties of Turkish

natural building stones
A. Ozguven a, Y. Ozcelik b,⁎
a
General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration, Ankara, Turkey
b
Department of Mining Engineering, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: It is known that fire and high temperatures cause degradation of natural building stones. There are many studies
Received 26 December 2013 focused on the effect of high temperature on physico-mechanical properties of sandstone and granites while
Received in revised form 25 June 2014 there are a few insufficient studies on limestones and marble. Almost all of the studies performed on limestone
Accepted 7 October 2014
and marble are established at temperatures lower than 1000 °C and just focused on investigating some of the
Available online 29 October 2014
physico-mechanical properties of natural building stones and therefore some of the physical and mechanical
Keywords:
properties of limestones and marbles exposed up to this temperature are not studied in detail. That condition
Natural building stones cannot explain how the properties of marble and limestone change with high temperatures, which are widely
Temperature used in many areas of our lives as building materials.
Thermal effect The aim of this study is to investigate the changing of physico-mechanical properties of natural building materials
Fire including limestone and marbles exposed to different temperatures ranging from room temperature up to
Physico-mechanical properties 1000 °C in the oven. For this purpose, samples were exposed to the heat separately starting from 200 °C, gradu-
Mineralogical–petrographical properties ally 400, 600, 800 and 1000 °C and then some physico-mechanical properties of them and reference sample at
room temperature were determined. The results obtained from the tests were analyzed in detail in terms of
criticality of temperature degree, positive or negative effect of temperature rise, reusability of the building
stone exposed to heat.
As a conclusion of the study, important results are given in many aspects such as, usage areas of fire exposed
natural stones, safety precautions at usage areas in addition to gained properties of natural stones due to
temperature.
© 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Natural stones are widely used in all areas of our lives. Exact proper-
ties of the natural stones must be known especially for constructing
structures such as, buildings, bridges, and tunnels. Via this method
safe and healthy living areas could be created. Besides knowing the
most physico-mechanical properties of natural stones, it is also required
to define how natural stones are affected by the heat which is an impor-
tant factor.
In many fields, such as energy, geology, civil engineering, the dispos-
al of highly radioactive nuclear waste, the underground storage and
mining of petroleum and natural gas, the development and utilization
of geothermal resources, the safety of drainage and comprehensive
utilization of coal seam gas and the post-disaster reconstruction of
underground rocks engineering are all related to the strength and
deformation characteristics of rocks under high temperatures (Liu and
Xu, 2013).
⁎ Corresponding author. Tel.: +90 312 2976447; fax: +90 312 2992155.
E-mail address: yilmaz@hacettepe.edu.tr (Y. Ozcelik).
It is important to predict the behavior of natural stones, which are lo-
cated around high temperature and heat sources, against the tempera-
ture to take necessary security measures with estimating the damage.
The physical, mechanical, chemical and petrographical properties of
rock, which are used as building materials, are important from the
aspect of their uses in our daily life (Karaca et al., 2010).
Marble is a material that is constantly used in building, either for
structural (columns, floors, etc.) or decorative purposes (frieses, reliefs,
statues, etc.). It is a noble material of particular beauty and easy manip-
ulation, but it is susceptible to alteration by natural atmospheric agents
or others resulting from urban and industrial activity (Rodriguez-
Gordillo and Saez-Perez, 2006).
Rocks are composed of minerals, bounding matrix, and cracks and
pores. The geometry and density of the cracks and pores are the main
controlling parameters for the physical properties of rocks (Darot and
Reuschlé, 2000; Yavuz et al., 2010). In engineering rock structures,
temperature variation is one of the primary factors influencing the
integrity and physical properties of rocks. It is responsible for the chang-
es in microstructure of the rock by inducing new crack and micro crack
development and so, for the increase in void space volume (Chaki et al.,
2008).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2014.10.006
0013-7952/© 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
128 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136
Cracks, crusts and spalling were observed on the blocks following
the fire hazard. One should note that the term crack refers to discontinu-
ities formed by thermal gradients within the marble blocks during the
fire (Koca et al., 2006).
Fire disaster related changes in the petrological and petrophysical
properties of the building materials can often lead to stability problem.
It is important to establish the effect of fire and high temperature on the
building structure, including natural stone. The walls of a building must
necessarily attain a high temperature in a fire and suffer serious deteri-
oration in strength and stability. Natural stone can be seriously affected
in building fires, so it is useful to ascertain on which occasions the
structure can be restored without replacement of stone and when it is
necessary to include new stone material to maintain the structural
integrity of the building (Hajpál, 2002).
The calcinations of calcite from 800 °C may constitute the main ef-
fect generated by fire, as both the transformation from calcite to calcium
hydroxide and the subsequent hydration of calcium hydroxide involve
important volume changes that may alter the internal structure of the
stone.
CaCO3 + HEAT → CaO + CO2 ↑
CaO + H2O → Ca(OH)2 + HEAT
These materials generally do not spall severely because the grains sit
in a matrix and the stone can to an extent ‘absorb’ the stress produced
by fire. Dense materials, such as granites or marble, experience physical
breakdown due to the micro-cracking generated by the thermal expan-
sion of minerals. The absence of a matrix, which in more porous
materials absorbs the stresses generated by the expansion of mineral
grains, increases the likelihood of mechanical breakdown. The very
low porosity also favors this kind of disintegration due to the denser
packing of minerals with different thermal and structural properties
in the stone. It has been observed that, independent of the stone
type, the lower the initial porosity the greater the porosity increase
generated during fire—changes up to 13 times the initial porosity
have been reported in building stones with low porosity. In addition
to this, calcareous stones undergo severe processes of physical de-
struction in zones affected by fire above 800 °C due to the calcination
of calcite (Gomez-Heras et al., 2006, 2009; Ozguven and Ozcelik,
2013).
The most catastrophic change occurred in limestone cores, begin-
ning to take place above 600 °C due to calcinations processes. Nine
out of 10 Tardos limestone cores exploited during the 600 °C tests.
Above 600 °C test, Süttő travertine samples were found undestroyed
at the end of the test, but the samples crumbled after some hours
exposed to air as a result of the volume increment produced by the re-
action of CaO with air moisture to form Ca(OH)2 (portlandite). This pro-
cess has been previously reported as a result of high temperature testing
of stones containing calcite (Chakrabarti et al., 1996; Török and Hajpál,
2005; Gomez-Heras, 2006; Gomez-Heras et al., 2006).
Researchers investigating the effects of different temperatures on
natural stones have demonstrated different features of the natural
stones. Some of these studies such as Blackwelder (1926) heating
igneous rocks at different temperatures up to 880 °C as the presence
of empirical observations or researchers such as Allison and Bristow
(1999), Gomez-Heras et al. (2004), McCabe et al. (2007a) studied the
weathering of rocks by the fire simulation.
The most serious studies about the effect of temperature on the
sandstones were made by Mahmutoglu (1998), Hajpál (2002), Hajpál
and Török (2004), Gomez-Heras et al. (2004), McCabe et al. (2007a),
McCabe et al. (2007b), Gomez-Heras et al. (2008), McCabe et al.
(2010). Authors examined the changes occurred in sandstones by
observational and experimental studies.
Darot and Reuschlé (2000), Reuschlé et al. (2006) and Chaki et al.
(2008) investigated the micro-fractures and thermal damage in the
studies done on granite samples which were exposed to temperatures
up to 600 °C.
Although the subject which the effects of temperature on the natural
stones have been studied by different researchers, there are less number
of articles that try to explain the changes of the stones by performing
extensive physical and mechanical tests at very high temperatures.
Studies have often tried to explain the behavior marble and limestone
have shown against the heat, such as; investigation on degradation
of historical buildings (Gomez-Heras et al., 2006; Koca et al., 2006;
Rodriguez-Gordillo and Saez-Perez, 2006); or heat cycles with heating
to 80–100 °C and cooling to −15–20 °C by examining a small number
of samples (Malaga-Starzec et al., 2006; Yavuz and Topal, 2007; Lam
dos Santos et al., 2011) or such as Yavuz et al. (2010) investigating
some properties of heated samples up to 500 °C.
Ozguven and Ozcelik (2013) investigated the effects of different
degrees of temperature from room temperature up to 1000 °C (room
temperature, 200, 400, 600, 800, 1000 °C) on marble and limestone by
using the aspects of change in color and whiteness, polish reception,
daily physical change, pH and temperature variations of the cooling so-
lution which was prepared from the cooked samples at 800 °C and
1000 °C. They found that natural stones' structure becomes damaged
and/or changes, brakes down, pours or cracks when heated above
800 °C. They also mentioned that natural stones that face this amount
of heat under atmospheric conditions, crack, fragmentize, spall and
disperse generally.
The effect of temperature on marble was investigated by Liu and Xu
(2013). They carried out dynamic mechanical experiments on marble
under different temperatures and different impact loadings by using
the high temperature split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) experimental
system. Their experimental results show that the stress–strain curves
under impact loadings and different temperature show the same change
trend below 800 °C. When temperature exceeds 800 °C, the densification
stage prolongs, the curve moves towards right quickly, the slope de-
creases and the yielding stage extends evidently. The dynamic mechani-
cal characteristics of marble take on obvious temperature effects.
Brotóns et al. (2013) investigated the effect of the temperatures be-
tween 105 and 600 °C on the physical and mechanical properties of a
porous rock namely calcarenite including porosity, ultrasonic wave
propagation, uniaxial compressive strength, young modulus, Poisson's
ratio and slake durability tests. Their tests were carried out under differ-
ent conditions (i.e. air-cooled and water-cooled) in order to study the
effect of fire off method. The results show that uniaxial compressive
strength and elastic parameters (i.e. elastic modulus and Poisson's
ratio), decrease as the temperature increases for the tested range of
temperatures. Slake durability index also exhibits a reduction with tem-
perature. Other physical properties, closely related with the mechanical
properties of the stone, are porosity, attenuation and propagation veloc-
ity of ultrasonic waves in the material. All exhibit considerable changes
with temperature.
Sengun (2013) investigated the influence of temperatures ranging
from 105 to 600 °C on the physical and mechanical properties of six
carbonate rocks (two marbles, two low-porous limestones and two
high-porous limestones). It was found that the values of bulk density,
P wave velocity, uniaxial compressive strength and modulus of elastici-
ty, Brazilian tensile strength and Shore hardness decreased to different
extents, while apparent porosity increased under the influence of heat
up to 600 °C. The results indicated a maximum decrease of 62–82% in
modulus of elasticity and the least reduction of 1.2–2.7% in bulk density
of carbonate rocks. Moreover, the uniaxial compressive strength,
Brazilian tensile strength, P wave velocity and Shore hardness values
decreased by 27–51%, 28–75%, 36–69% and 10–40%, respectively.
Moreover, increase in apparent porosity values of tested rocks with
very high porosity was the least, whereas the apparent porosity values
of low-porous rocks increased up to ten times of initial value.
 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136 129

In all of the investigated studies, exposed temperatures are generally
less than 1000 °C and therefore some of the physical and mechanical
properties of limestones and marbles exposed up to this temperature
are not studied in detail. For this reason, in this study the effect of
high temperature on physical and mechanical properties of limestones
and marbles having different textures and structural properties is inves-
tigated in detail. For this purpose, positive or negative impacts of the
thermal effects on natural stones are examined. Expanding the use of
natural stones with positive results, taking the necessary safety
measurements against the adverse effects, and recommended kind of
natural stones which are to be used in places with high risk of fire or
traded with are explained at the end.
2. Materials and methods
In the study, the aim is to determine the changes of the properties of
the natural stones against the temperature, which are commonly avail-
able in Turkey, commercially producible, having different structures and
textural characteristics. In this study, eight different samples (four of
which are limestone and the others are marble) were used. Commercial
names of samples used in the experiments with sample codes are given
in Table 1.
Firstly, samples were taken from natural stone quarries and drilling
machine was used to take core samples, then they were cut with circu-
lar saw in the desired dimensions and the surfaces were smoothed.
To determine the effect of temperature, samples which were non-
exposed to heat were separated from the samples exposed to heat and
were compared by the properties.
In existing literature, three principal methods can be identified for
the ‘laboratory’ investigation of fire effects. The most common method
is to model the effects of the increased temperatures generated during
fires within ovens. More recently, however, there has been some explo-
ration of the use of real fires and laser-based techniques to replicate
both temperature effects and associated chemical reactions. The use of
ovens to simulate the heating generated by fire has the advantage of
their availability and automatic function, as well as the high degree of
standardization and replication that can be obtained in such tests. In
addition, the wealth of results in the literature obtained with this tech-
nique guarantee a database for comparison of new results (Allison and
Bristow, 1999; Hajpál and Török, 2004; Gomez-Heras et al., 2009. For
this reason, oven was preferred in this study.
To explain the effect of temperatures, different degrees of tempera-
ture were selected. The purpose of this operation is to clearly show what
kind of changes occurs at different temperatures. The highest tempera-
ture used in the study was determined as 1000 °C which is the highest
temperature expected in a fire incident and for the alteration of natural
stones. Samples were exposed to the heat separately starting from
200 °C, gradually 400, 600, 800 and 1000 °C and then compared with
reference sample at room temperature according to the degree of tem-
perature. By using Protherm PLF 130/25 model oven, samples were
heated considering the oven conditions with a heating rate of 5 °C per
minute. Exposing the natural stones to the required temperatures was

Table 1
Petrographic descriptions and microphotographs of the samples.

Sample code Sample name Petrographic descriptions Microphotographs of the samples

HP Hazar Pink Sparitic limestone. Bioclast, calcite and abundantly fossils are present.

DB Daisy Beige Biosparitic limestone. Moderately crystalline calcite and small amount of
opaque minerals are present.

SB Sivrihisar Beige Sparitic limestone. Moderate crystalline calcite and a small amount of
recrystallized thinney calcite veins and opaque minerals are present.

BB Burdur Beige Sparitic limestone. Moderate crystalline calcite and a small amount of
recrystallized thinney calcite veins and opaque minerals are present.

AW Afyon White Marble. Granoblastic texture. Moderate crystalline calcite and a small amount
of recrystalised thinney calcite veins and opaque minerals are present.

AG Afyon Gray Marble. Granoblastic texture. The calcites with pressure twining are present.

AT Afyon Tigerskin Marble. Granoblastic texture. Coarse–moderate crystalline calcite and small
amount of opaque minerals and quartz are present.

MM Mugla Milas Marble. Granoblastic texture. Calcite and small amount of muscovite, quartz,
and opaque minerals are present
130 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136

intended with this process. After reaching the desired temperature,

natural stones were kept for 1 h to inflict enough exposure to the tem-
perature effect. Natural stones were stored in the oven for 1 h in order to
let the physical and mechanical changes take place at the required tem-
peratures. Natural stones exposed to high temperatures were cooled
down to room temperature inside the oven to avoid thermal shock.
Thin sections of the natural stone samples were prepared and then
were examined under a polarized microscope to determine the textural
features of each sample. The petrographic descriptions and microphoto-
graphs of the samples were determined from these thin-sections and
the results are given in Table 1.
To introduce the different aspects of the physico-mechanical chang-
es of marble and limestone depending on the temperature, samples
which were not exposed to temperatures and the ones exposed to dif-
ferent temperatures were prepared and tests were carried out under
the conditions specified. The physico-mechanical tests include density
(D) (ASTM D5550-06, 2006), bulk density (BD), ratio of fullness (RF),
porosity (P), apparent porosity (AP), freeze loss (FL), freeze–thaw
resistance(FTR) (TS 699, 1987), Mohs hardness (TS 6809, 1989), water
absorption at atmospheric pressure (WA) (TS EN, 13755, 2009), water
absorption coefficient by capillarity (WACC) (TS EN, 1925, 2000),
uniaxial compressive strength (UCS)(EN, 1926, 2006), indirect tensile
strength (TS) (TS 7654, 1989), abrasion resistance (AR) (EN, 14157,
2004).
Some physico-mechanical properties of all samples before exposing
to the high temperatures are given in Table 2.

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Density Fig. 1. Density change related to temperature: a) limestones, b) marbles.

Density values measured from the samples which were heated from
room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results are given in
Fig. 1. When Fig. 1 was analyzed, the following results were obtained.
For limestones up to 800 °C and for marbles up to 600 °C, density values
do not change significantly with the temperature. This situation was
discussed by Ferrero and Marini (2001) in their study. They stated
that the real density does not show significant changes after heating.
This hypothesis appears realistic since the rocks are basically made up
of pure calcium carbonate with small percentages of magnesium, and
the heating temperatures are much lower than the carbonate dissocia-
tion temperature (900 °C). With increasing temperature, a slight de-
crease and increase occurs in density values while the values mostly
remain within the same trend. As the temperature increased, structural
deformations took place therefore changing the real density values. For
two types of stone sudden drop begins at 800 °C. It is remarkable that
density values do not change significantly for the limestone samples
DB and HP and marble samples AT. The limestone sample SB's and the
marble sample MM's densities are drastically reduced. The reason for
this is considered to be the easy decomposition of SB and MM after
the exposure to high heat. Ozguven and Ozcelik (2013) also stated
that SB and MM were the first to decompose when exposed to high
heat in their study observing daily changes in the natural stones
exposed to high heat.
3.2. Bulk density
Bulk density values measured from the samples which were heated
from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results are
given in Fig. 2. When Fig. 2 was analyzed, the following results were
obtained. Bulk density decreases dramatically with the increase in tem-
perature. Reduction in bulk density increases after 400 °C. This is caused
by the capillary cracks that occur in natural stones, expansion and mate-
rials left from the structure. Changes in the bulk density of limestones,
decreased with the same slope of the different varieties of limestones,
except HP. HP sample is separated from the other samples with
these properties, as well as density. In the samples, less change with
temperature is realized. Bulk density values decrease considerably at

Table 2
Some physico-mechanical properties of the samples used in the study.

Tests Units HP DB SB BB AW AG AT MM
3
D kg/m 2737.9 2723.9 2722.2 2748.3 2716.2 2716.2 2728.5 2725.9
BD kg/m3 2636.1 2663.3 2695.2 2683.2 2711.1 2712.8 2710.3 2707.3
RF % 96.3 97.8 99.0 97.6 99.8 99.9 99.3 99.3
P % 3.7 2.2 1.0 2.4 0.2 0.1 0.7 0.7
AP % 2.4 1.7 0.6 2.0 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.4
H Mohs 4.0 4.0 3.5 4.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0
WA % 0.9 0.6 0.2 0.7 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
WACC g/m2 s0.5 1.575 0.985 0.400 0.888 0.187 0.151 0.142 0.232
UCS MPa 149.2 187.4 137.2 139.3 83.3 80.4 70.3 61.2
TS MPa 8.52 10.35 10.22 9.16 7.86 9.60 6.89 5.04
AR cm3/50 cm2 11.7 10.3 13.7 12.3 23.6 24.6 23.6 23.0
FL % 0.03 0.03 0.02 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
FTR MPa 122.7 191.1 134.7 183.8 85.1 92.0 74.2 77.5
 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136 131

Fig. 2. The effect of temperature on the weight of unit volume: a) limestones, b) marbles.
Fig. 3. The effect of temperature on occupancy rate: a) limestones, b) marbles.

800 °C. Decrease rate in bulk density of marbles increases after 200 °C.
Increase of porosity in the marbles is more than in the limestones. Po-
Decreasing bulk density values of the samples with increasing temper-
rosity of HP sample from limestones increases very slightly while the
ature are observed for almost all the marble samples.
other limestones increase more. Especially at temperatures above
As the heat increased, increases in bulk density were also observed
due to increase in void space of the rock. This case does not draw an
analogy with the changes happen in the density. This phenomenon
occurs because mineral structure and void space of the rock are affected
by heat changes for different rates. Therefore changes in density due to
heat are limited.

3.3. Ratio of fullness

Ratio of fullness values measured from the samples which were

heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results
are given in Fig. 3. When Fig. 3 is analyzed, the following results were
obtained. Ratio of fullness of natural stones decreases depending on
the effect of temperature rise. Critical temperature is determined as
400 °C, which changes the ratio of fullness. Ratio of fullness values of
HP sample in limestones has the minimum change in comparison to
other samples, while other samples' ratio of fullness values decreases.
Ratio of fullness values decreases with increasing temperature in
marbles. AW and AG samples seem to be the most reduced samples.

3.4. Porosity

The strength of a material decreases with increasing porosity but is

also related to pore size, pore shape and spatial distribution. Pores
may occur within the grains or in the grain boundaries. A comprehen-
sive study of porosity can provide valuable information in order to
determine whether a given type of marble is susceptible to thermal
stresses or not (Malaga-Starzec et al., 2006).
Porosity values measured from the samples which were heated from
room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results given are in
Fig. 4. When Fig. 4 was analyzed following results were obtained. Poros-
ity values of natural stones increase with the increase in temperature. Fig. 4. The effect of temperature on porosity: a) limestones, b) marbles.
132 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136

400 °C, porosity increases more. Porosity values of marble samples

increase when the temperature increases. Porosity increases faster for
samples AW and MM above 200 °C, for AG and AT above 400 °C.
Gomez-Heras et al. (2006) obtained similar results in their study. They
mentioned that the porosity increased in all the studied stones present
when they were heated to simulate the effect of fire. The rate of porosity
change is influenced by the “compactness” of stone. The compact stones
show more dramatic change in porosity at elevated temperatures than
the less cemented ones. Mechanical property changes of natural stones
caused by increase of porosity due to temperature are features to be
noted. Increase in porosity of samples explains the decrease of compres-
sive strength very well. This also explains the decrease in the strength of
the lattice structure.

3.5. Apparent porosity

Apparent porosity values measured from the samples which were

heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results
are given in Fig. 5. When Fig. 5 was analyzed, the following results were
obtained. For the limestones and marbles, almost the same tendency is
seen depending on the temperature. There are visible porosity increases
seen at 400 °C for limestones and at 200 °C and above for marbles. This
increase was slow at the beginning while it got faster above 600 °C both
for limestones and marbles. HP sample from limestones and MM sam-
ple from marbles are the most affected natural stones by temperature.

3.6. Hardness
Hardness values measured from the samples which were heated
from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results are
given in Fig. 6. When Fig. 6 was analyzed, the following results were ob-
tained. Hardness values of the temperature exposed natural stones do
Fig. 6. The effect of temperature on hardness: a) limestones, b) marbles.
not change significantly with the temperature change. There is a de-
crease about 1 Mohs between the hardness value of the sample in the
room temperature and the hardness value of the sample heated to
1000 °C. Hardness values decrease for all natural stones exposed to
temperature. It is observed that there are some differences caused by
the composition and structure differences of limestones. It is seen that
the hardness values change at 200 °C for SB and DB and at 400 °C for
BB and HP samples. In all of the natural stone samples used in the
study, the DB sample has the highest hardness loss. Hardness of the
DB dropped from 4 Mohs to 2 Mohs. For the marble samples, except
MM, hardness change is observed with the same tendency by the effect
of temperature. Hardness of MM sample starts to decrease at 400 °C
while others start to decrease at 600 °C. Hardness values of the samples
are at the lowest level at 800 °C and 1000 °C while fractures, cracks and
distortion are formed is a result of temperature that must be taken into
consideration.

3.7. Water absorption at atmospheric pressure

Water absorption values at atmospheric pressure were measured

from the samples which were heated from room temperature up to
1000 °C gradually and the results are given in Fig. 7. When Fig. 7 was an-
alyzed, the following results were obtained. Water absorption values in-
crease in direct proportion with exposure to temperature of natural
stones. Initially, this ratio is small but as the temperature increases a sig-
nificant increase is observed in the rate of water absorption. Tempera-
ture variation and water absorption are parallel characteristics of
limestones. Change in the water absorption rate increased almost in
the same amount. HP sample showed the same trend with other lime-
stones until 600 °C while the rate of water absorption further increased
at 800 °C. At marbles, changes in the water absorption rate are parallel
to each other. While others absorb almost the same proportions of
water, MM sample is the most absorbing one.
Fig. 5. Apparent porosity change related to temperature: a) limestones, b) marbles.
 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136 133

Fig. 7. The effect of temperature on water absorption rate: a) limestones, b) marbles. Fig. 8. The effect of temperature on capillary water absorption coefficient: a) limestones,
b) marbles.

3.8. Water absorption coefficient by capillarity

Water absorption coefficient by capillarity values measured from the

samples which were heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C
gradually and the results are given in Fig. 8. When Fig. 8 was analyzed,
the following results were obtained. One of the most important proper-
ties is the determination of the capillary water absorption coefficient to
investigate the effect of high temperatures on the natural stones. This
feature enables to determine the capillary cracks of natural stones phys-
ically. It is seen that the temperature change directly affects the capillary
water absorption. Capillary water absorption increases with the in-
crease of temperature, as seen on the graphs. Very smooth graphs ob-
tained in this experiment explain the effect of temperature well.
Capillary water absorption property of limestones does not change sig-
nificantly up to 200 °C while capillary water absorption rates increases
rapidly above this temperature. The growth rate increases at 600 °C.
Capillary water absorption ratio of marbles increases a little while the
capillary water absorbs more above this temperature. MM sample is
separated from the other marbles by absorbing the maximum amount
of water.

3.9. Uniaxial compressive strength

Uniaxial compressive strength values measured from the samples

which were heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually
and the results are given in Fig. 9. When Fig. 9 was analyzed, the follow-
ing results were obtained. Strength of the natural stones is adversely af-
fected by the temperature changes. Limestones keep some of their
strength up to 400 °C. This is because of limestone's transformation
into lime after this temperature. After 400 °C, compressive strength
values rapidly decrease. Relative increase occurs in marble up to
200 °C, while the strength decreases with increase in temperature.
This situation fits the study of Koca et al. (2006). In the study of Koca
et al. (2006), unlike the general trend, increase in uniaxial compressive
strength is seen at 200 and 250 °C. The critical temperature for both Fig. 9. Compressive strength change related to temperature: a) limestones, b) marbles.
134 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136
natural stone types is 600 °C. Pressure resistance drops suddenly when
natural stones are exposed above this temperature. MM sample loses its
strength and even become dispersed at 800 °C and above it. For this
reason experiments at 1000 °C was not possible. Both for limestones
and marbles the pressure values decrease four times at 1000 °C.
Liu and Xu (2013) had similar results and they stated that before
800 °C, with temperature rising, the dynamic failure modes of rock
under the same impact velocity gradually become more and more
tempestuous. Although the strength of marble remarkably reduces,
the dynamic failure modes mutate at 800 °C. The amount of fragments
decreases and the size increases obviously. When temperature con-
tinues to increase, reaching 1000 °C, the specimen almost loses its
carrying capacity, presenting powder failure. At the same time, they
also revealed that the dynamic failure modes have no necessary
relationship with strength.
3.10. Tensile strength
Tensile strength values measured from the samples which were
heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results
are given in Fig. 10. When Fig. 10 was analyzed, the following results
were obtained. At temperature exposed natural stones, tensile strength
decreased with increasing temperature. At limestones, up to 800 °C
temperature increase/decrease was observed. BB and DB samples after
400 °C and HP and SB samples after 600 °C tend to have a downward
trend in tensile strength. Tensile strength of marbles has been changing
parallel to each other. Tensile strength decreases with the increase in
temperature. Sudden changes were not observed at any of the temper-
atures. Places that natural stones are used have gained great importance
due to tensile strength's reduction with rise of temperature. Building
stones must be used considering the security issues at places which
are likely to reach high temperatures.
Fig. 10. Temperature effect on indirect tensile strength: a) limestones, b)marbles.
3.11. Abrasion resistance
Abrasion resistance values measured from the samples which were
heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results
are given in Fig. 11. When Fig. 11 was analyzed, the following results
were obtained. It can be said that all natural stone samples have the
same trend as the wear characteristics when abrasion resistance is
analyzed. While there was no significant change in abrasion resistance
up to a significant temperature, abrasion of the samples increased
significantly at the critical temperature. It is observed that the wear re-
sistances of the marble samples and limestone samples are close to each
other respectively. It is observed that limestones have approximately
the same wear resistance up to 800 °C. All samples, except MM, have al-
most the same resistance to abrasion up to 600 °C. The critical temper-
ature of limestones is 800 °C. After 800 °C, abrasion increases rapidly.
The critical temperature of marbles is 600 °C. After 600 °C, abrasion
increases rapidly. After the critical temperatures, abrasion values
suddenly increased up to four times for both types of natural stones.
Just because of MM sample's grain size is greater, abrasion resistance
experiments deteriorate rapidly with increasing temperature.
3.12. Freeze loss
Freeze-loss values measured from the samples which were heated
from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the results are
given in Fig. 12. When Fig. 12 was analyzed, the following results
were obtained. No freeze loss was observed up to 600 °C at all samples,
except MM. After 600 °C frost mass losses occur in different propor-
tions. For sample MM, frost mass loss begins at 200 °C. The most affect-
ed sample from the freeze and thaw experiment by the effect of
temperature is MM. All of the limestones show different behaviors at
temperatures above 600 °C. The most interesting of these behaviors is
the increase in the mass after frost occurs at BB sample. After the
freeze–thaw test, different rates of mass loss also occur at marbles
Fig. 11. Abrasion resistance change related to temperature: a) limestones, b) marbles.
 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136
Fig. 12. The effect of temperature on loss of freeze: a) limestones, b) marbles.
above 600 °C. If natural stones, which exposed to fire and high temper-
atures, didn't reach 600 °C due to the effect of seasonal temperature
changes, it can be stated that there would not be any problems consid-
ering the freeze–thaw test results.
3.13. Freeze–thaw resistance
Freeze–thaw resistance values measured from the samples which
were heated from room temperature up to 1000 °C gradually and the
results are given in Fig. 13. When Fig. 13 was analyzed, the following re-
sults were obtained. Compressive strength values for samples after
freeze–thaw experiment and samples which are not subjected to
freeze–thaw experiments are almost the same. The critical temperature
of limestones is 400 °C. Up to 400 °C, decreasing/increasing values were
observed and after this temperature compressive strength of all the
samples decreases. For the marbles, generally compressive strength
decreases at similar rates for each sample with the increase in temper-
ature. At any temperature sudden drop/increases were observed.
4. Conclusions
The following results were obtained from the studies done with the
samples which have different characteristics of limestone and marble
under the influence of high temperature and fire to determine the
changes in physico-mechanical properties against temperature to natu-
ral building stones. The temperature above 800 °C, calcite turns into
portlandite. This conversion leads to changing of structural and textural
properties of natural building stone. The results are given by considering
this conversion.
• Density does not affect the temperature significantly.
• Increase in the temperature causes decrease in the weight of bulk
density caused. By analyzing the densities of all natural stones, the ef-
fect of temperature changes with the same tendency was determined.
135
Fig. 13. The effect of temperature on frost mass loss: a) limestones, b) marbles.
• Increase in ratio of fullness of natural stones by decrease of tempera-
ture was determined. One of the most important features describing
the deterioration of physico-mechanical properties of rocks is
decrease in occupancy rate.
• It is determined that increase in the temperature increases the
porosity of the natural stones.
• When the temperature increases, apparent porosity values also
increase. This situation is caused by capillary cracks occurring due to
heat, materials from the structure, etc.
• The effect of temperature on hardness is limited. It is determined that
there is not a huge change on hardness of the samples even with a rise
of temperature.
• Considerable increases in the amount of water absorbed have been
identified on natural stones under the influence of high temperatures.
These increase rates for all kinds of marble and limestone are approx-
imately parallel to each other.
• Increase in the amount of absorbed water by increasing temperature
can trigger the structural demolitions. Therefore, safety measure-
ments should be taken while exposing with water when a fire has
been detected.
• It is determined that rising temperature produce capillary cracks
and capillary cracks cause increase in the capillary water absorption
coefficient on the natural stones.
• Temperature changes for natural stones are affecting the compressive
strength values. Especially, strength values of the samples with 600 °C
and above are relatively low. Therefore, using the natural stones as
a carrier in buildings is not convenient, considering the building
would possibly reach these temperatures.
• Tensile strength of the samples decreases with increasing tempera-
ture. For the limestones, this is observed in an irregular shape at differ-
ent temperatures with decrease/increase. For the marbles, strength is
regularly decreases depending on the increase of temperature.
• Usage areas of the natural stones exposed to fire or high tempera-
tures are very important depending on the level of temperature.
136 A. Ozguven, Y. Ozcelik / Engineering Geology 183 (2014) 127–136
Temperatures reaching 600–800 °C cause destructive damage the
natural stones. Therefore, high amount of abrasion can damage the
building structure and increase the renewal costs.
• As a result of freeze and thaw test, mass loss/change for almost all
samples occurs at the critical temperature of 600 °C. After this
temperature, sudden mass changes take place on the natural stones.
According to the degree of exposed temperature on natural building
stones, mass loss gains importance.
• No noticeable changes are observed between the compressive
strength values of freeze–thaw cycle of temperature exposed natural
building stones and compressive strength values of samples without
freeze–thaw experiments.
• Experiments of frost mass loss and frost compressive strength, while
providing for the learning characteristics of natural stones that are
exposed to temperature, are not appropriate to compare the different
properties of the samples against changing temperature.
Acknowledgments
This study is supported by Scientific Research and Development
Office of Hacettepe University (Project No. 012D07602001). Therefore,
we would like to thank to Scientific Research and Development Office
for its contributions and also Prof. Dr. Yusuf Kagan Kadioglu from
Department of Geology, Ankara University, for his help about mineral-
ogical and petrographical descriptions of the natural stones.
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