Infrared Thermography for the Characterization of Painted Vaults of Historic Masonry Buildings

The infrared thermography is a type of non-destructive investigation which can find interesting application in acquiring information about the structural features of ancient masonry buildings. In this case, in fact, the needs of preservation of the historical values have to be compound with the needs of achieving a proper level of knowledge of the parameters influencing the structural behaviour in order to perform a reliable evaluation of their seismic safety. A recent application of the infrared thermography was proposed in the framework of the Project on the seismic evaluation of the Museum of Capodimonte in Naples (Italy). The objective was to clarify if the painted vaults covering some rooms could have structural function and to identify their constructive typology. In this circumstance, an interesting methodological approach, with more general validity, has been developed by integrating the instrumental investigations with different sources of information, such as historical documents and hypotheses of critical interpretation.