Influence of thermal shock on temperature distribution in adhered ceramic tiling systems

Abstract

This study investigated the effects caused by the thermal shock phenomenon on the temperature distribution in Adhered Ceramic Tiling Systems (ACTS). Cyclic thermal and hygroscopic loads are periodic events resulting from successive and sequential processes of heating by solar irradiation and sudden cooling by heavy rains. Through an experimental program carried out in a ceramic tile prototype composed of porcelain tiles settle with adhesive mortar directly on a concrete wall, monitored the surface temperatures and temperatures at the adhesive mortar-concrete interface were measured during its exposure to heating and cooling cycles according to NBR 15575-4 (ABNT, 2021) procedures. The confinement of thermal energy (heat) inside the structure, after the beginning of cooling, demonstrates that part of the thermal stresses is maintained internally to the structure even after the drop-in surface temperature of the ceramic tile (non-homogeneous distribution), indicating that the movements structural elements of thermal origin will tend to different directions (non-uniform) and, consequently, will cause opposite stresses between layers. This results in a possible increase and concentration of stresses in certain regions that, if critical, will lead to the appearance of damage in the ceramic coating.