Analyzing lime mortars from a historic construction in Magán (Toledo, Spain): Insights into mineralogy and firing temperatures

Mortar samples from the remains of a nearly vanished structure in the village of Magán (Toledo, Spain) have been investigated. Their mineralogical and chemical composition have been analyzed to understand the building technology of their historical period and the functionality of the original structure. Furthermore, a wide range of characterization techniques has been employed in the investigation regarding the amount of information they can provide and assess their effectiveness in the field. Chemical characterization of the mortar samples has been performed by XRD and XRF and completed with TGA studies. FTIR and Raman Spectroscopy, together with ²⁸Si and ²⁷Al-MAS-NMR and Microscopy Studies complete these characterization studies. Although the samples possess similar composition, since the predominant mineralogy is quartz, feldspars, and phyllosilicates, the differences discovered let us establish a relationship between chemical data and petrographic mineralogical data, and the source of materials.