The diagnostic research on the wall structures assumes great importance throughout the restoration of buildings: in fact, it is an essential tool available to the designer-engineer to evaluate the grade of wholeness of the building and to calibrate the necessary actions to safeguard them. Unfortunately, most of the techniques usually do not respect the non-invasive criteria followed for the cultural heritage, but the damage caused to the masonry is generally not relevant and justified by the data obtained.

The only non-destructive investigations are the georadar, the endoscopy essays (Borescopes and probe BIPS) and the measurement of sonic velocity, which give information about the nature of the walls, their thickness, homogeneity, the presence of gaps, or discontinuities. It can also perform non-destructive monitoring by extensometers, inclinometers, and other similar instruments for the measurement of the movements of the masonry over the time.

To know the mechanical parameters of the structure (compressive resistance, state of tension, elastic modulus, tear resistance) should instead be used semi-destructive techniques, such as the flat jacks (single and double) and coring, and testing on samples taken from cuts or even by coring.

Other useful measures are: the water content, which is carried out by weight, the soluble salts present in the structures (by ionic chromatography and total conductivity) and the permeability of the masonry.

“Il Cenacolo” is also specialized in diagnosis on concrete structures having an historical importance, with tests such as the hammer method, the hammer SONREB, the penetrometer and the Pull-out.