Emissivity measurements on historic building materials using dual wavelength infrared thermography

The most reliable method to obtain correct emissivity values for the infrared thermographic systems and applications is to determine the emissivity of the targets to be tested. Although this approach is not possible during in situ applications, samples of the targets can be collected and measured, as in this work, in the laboratory. In the present work, the emissivity values of selected historic building materials were measured at a variety of temperatures, in the 3-5.4 mum and 8-12 mum regions of the infrared spectrum. Porous stones from the Mediterranean area and marbles, used as historic building materials, were investigated. The examined materials presented different emissivity values, caused by their surface state and microstructure. In addition, the effect of temperature and wavelength on the emissivity values of such historic building materials was also considered.