Determination of strength parameters and quality assessment of Denizli travertines (SW Turkey)

Travertine, carbonate-rich sedimentary rocks which are deposited by hot and cold waters. As with all natural stones, strength properties of travertines have great importance, depending on the using conditions and places. Naturally porous structure of travertines is the most important parameter affecting the overall strength. Denizli basin is one of the world's major travertine regions. In this study, strength properties and relations between obtained parameters of Denizli travertines were studied. Uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) values of travertines are widely ranging between 9.58 and 132.32 MPa. Noche type travertines are identified to have 59%-100% higher strength than other type of travertines. Flexural strength under concentrated load (3 point flexural strength, FLS3) and flexural strength under constant moment (4 point flexural strength, FLS4) tests which are required for CE certification were also carried out on travertine samples. Between these tests linear relationship expressed as FLS4 = 0.98*FLS3 + 0.094 was found. Variations of strength parameters depending on the stone cutting type have been presented for the first time in this study. It is found that the strength values under parallel loading to lamination are 1.44 times higher than the perpendicular loading. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.