Dr Giovanni Pesce

Associate Professor

School: Engineering, Physics and Mathematics

Giovanni L. Pesce (Gianluca) is an Associate Professor at the Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Northumbria University Newcastle.

Giovanni obtained his Master’s degree in Architecture (focussed on the conservation of historic buildings) in 1999 at the University of Genoa (Italy), with a thesis in building archaeology supervised by Prof. Tiziano Mannoni.

After graduation, he worked as a specialist in building pathology and building archaeology at the “Institute for the History of Material Culture” of Genoa and at Ipsilon p.s.c.r.l.

In 2006 he obtained a PhD in "Materials Engineering for the Science of Construction" (University of Genoa), with a thesis on the use of meta-kaolin as hydraulic additive in new lime-based construction materials.

From 2006 to 2010 he collaborated with the Department of Sciences for Architecture of the University of Genoa on a number of projects as a specialist in material characterization, building pathology and building archaeology.

In 2010 he moved to the UK where he studied the carbonation process in new lime-based construction materials. In 2014 he obtained a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Bath.

From 2013 to 2016 he worked at the University of Bath as a post-doctoral research associate on the EPSRC project: "Experimentally verified Atomistic modelling of lime in construction materials" (P.I. Dr. Richard J. Ball; C.I. Prof. Stephen Parker)

In 2016 he joined Northumbria University Newcastle as a Lecturer.

Giovanni is a member a various professional organizations such as the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IoM3), the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland, the Architects Registration Board (ARB) and the Institute of Civil Engineering (ICE).

Campus Address

Northumbria University, City Campus
Room 003, Sutherland Building
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 8ST

0191 227 3065

Email Giovanni

Research Themes and Scholarly Interests

Can we develop new, more sustainable building materials based on past knowledge? Can we decode the empirical knowledge of the past, translate it into modern scientific knowledge, and use this to develop new construction materials that are more respectful of the environment?
Giovanni’s research interests are centered around the development of low- and zero-carbon construction materials inspired by the past, tailored to tomorrow’s construction industry.
Giovanni’s multidisciplinary background allows him to understand the needs of the modern construction industry and bring these inside the laboratories where the new materials are developed. His expertise in the field of material culture (developed at the Institute for the History of Material Culture of Genoa, Italy) allows him to learn from the empirical knowledge of the past, and use this to further our knowledge of the past societies and to develop innovative construction materials.
Giovanni is a leading expert in lime and is passionately interested in traditional construction materials.

Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Unveiling AlUla Old Town: A Transdisciplinary Approach to the Study of the Built Heritage in the Northwest of Saudi Arabia. Integration of Building Archaeology and Mortar Analysis, Gilento, P., Pesce, G., Vernet, A., Khan, B., Pesce, C. 15 Dec 2025, In: International Journal of Architectural Heritage
Development of an interdisciplinary approach to the radiocarbon dating of earth mortars from Alula Old Town (Saudi Arabia). Integration of building archaeology, mortar analysis and radiocarbon dating, Gilento, P., Pesce, G., Vernet, A., Pesce, C. 18 Sep 2024, In: Radiocarbon
Effects of Carbohydrates and Sulfonates During CaO Hydration on Portlandite Microstructure, Pesce, G., Pesce, C. 9 Sep 2024, 43rd Cement & Concrete Science Conference
Effects of Sucrose on Fresh-State and Setting Properties of Air Lime, Pesce, C., Pesce, G., Molinari, M., Corradi, M. 11 Aug 2023, In: Materials and Structures
RILEM TC 277-LHS report: How hot are hot-lime-mixed mortars? A review, Pavia, S., Veiga, R., Hughes, J., Pesce, G., Valek, J., Alvarez, J., Faria, P., Padovnik, A. 4 May 2023
Effects of Steam-Slaking on the Characteristics of Lime from Three Different UK Manufacturers, Pesce, C., Godina, M., Henry, A., Pesce, G. 2023, RILEM Bookseries, Switzerland, Springer

Current and Recent Projects

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Freeze-thaw and capiliarry testing of mortar samples from Hadrian's Wall mortar trial, Pesce, G. (Principal Investigator), Pesce, G. (Co Investigator), Historic England Limited, 30/10/17 - 28/02/18, £2,272.00
Laboratory tests of mortar samples for Historic England, Pesce, G. (Principal Investigator), Pesce, G. (Co Investigator), Historic England Limited, 15/05/17 - 14/11/17, £2,691.00
Research and evaluation of hot lime technology for the construction of a pinnacle at York Minster Cathedral, Pesce, G. (Principal Investigator), Pesce, G. (Co Investigator), Historic England Limited, 15/12/16 - 15/09/17, £5,199.00
Experimentally verified atomistic modelling of lime in construction materials, Pesce, G. (Principal Investigator), Pesce, G. (Co Investigator), University of Bath, 01/09/16 - 02/12/16, £11,490.00

Professional Activity

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Invited talk: APPLICATION OF THE RADIOCARBON METHOD TO MORTARS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL CONTEXTS 2024
Oral presentation: Archeometria e Geoarcheologia. Dalla caratterizzazione dei materiali alla loro datazione e provenienza 2020
Oral presentation: Informazioni ottenibili dai grumi e granuli bianchi contenuti nelle malte di calce storiche 2020

PGR Supervision

Tyler Lott Johnston Technical and economic development of innovative bio-based construction materials Start Date: 01/10/2024
Tyler Lott Johnston Technical and economic development of innovative bio-based construction materials Start Date: 01/10/2024 End Date: 17/10/2025