Post-earthquake characterisation of building stones used in Hatay

A significant part of the Hatay historical building stock is constructed of stone masonry and suffered extensive damage during the 2023 Kahramanmaras, earthquakes. Two years after the earthquakes, restoration and rebuilding continues. To aid these activities, this study establishes a reference dataset describing the chemical, physical, and mechanical properties of building stones used in the province. To determine these properties, stone samples were collected from 16 buildings and were first subjected to non-destructive mechanical tests (specifically, Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity and Schmidt hammer tests). Further characterisation was then conducted in the laboratory, where ground and cut samples were subjected to X-ray fluorescence (XRF) tests to determine stone types, and Impact Excitation of Vibration (IEV), flexural and compressive strength tests to determine mechanical properties. During the mechanical tests, stereo Digital Image Correlation (DIC) was used to extract detailed information on material response, considering the limited availability of samples. The results highlight the dominant use of limestone in the province, with compressive strengths varying from similar to 3 to similar to 100 MPa. Linear correlations are revealed between the mechanical parameters and a good agreement is observed between on-site and laboratory results. This paves the way for using simple non-destructive site measurements and correlation equations to quickly estimate stone properties for future restoration and reconstruction activities.