Durability of freshwater limestones tenelija, miljevina and muljika - Built-in factors as causes of changes in the stone

Abstract

: This paper presents the freshwater limestones, from tenelija and (Mostar) miljevina , which are intercalated in the Mukoba deposit near Mostar, and their "stone cousins," Posušje miljevina and Tomislavgrad muljika . In the process of diagenesis they acquired a specific orientation and structure (especially tenelija ), which gave them specific physical properties (small bulk density, high porosity and permeability), which "classic" limestones used in construction do not have, and which were decisive for the choice of this stone for construction of the Old Bridge and other buildings in the wider area of Mostar and in the area of Posubje municipality, but also in other karst poljes of Herzegovina and southwestern Bosnia, in parts of Central Bosnia, and Miljevina near Foa. The second part of the paper presents the so-called built-in (internal) factors that the builders try to avoid in order for freshwater limestones that are built into numerous stone buildings and/or monuments to avoid complex processes of stone changes, or weathering (decay) of stone due to its interaction with various environmental conditions (external factors). It covers the problems and significance of the choice of stone, the method and (often too small) depth of its extraction from the deposit for the construction of significant buildings, insufficiently long aging (storage) after extraction, incorrect installation (stacking) of the stone in relation to its position in the deposit, as well as various errors in stone processing and execution, along with inadequate maintenance.