Salt weathering can cause substantial deterioration of natural rocks, building stones, masonry materials, monuments, and engineering structures. Nearly two centuries of salt weathering studies, both theoretically and empirically, have manifested its power as well as its complexity. This paper attempts to unite the kinds of literature assess the various theories in the light of the combined information. The theoretical approaches concerning the most cited mechanisms of salt weathering such as crystallization, hydration and thermal expansion of crystalline salts are thoroughly reviewed. It is understood that there is no universally acceptable hard and sound theoretical information on this topic yet. More precise theories should be developed to elucidate the complications of the mechanisms of salt weathering as well as to interpret the results of empirical studies.

盐的风化作用会导致天然岩石，建筑石材，砖石材料，纪念碑和工程结构的严重破坏。从理论和经验上讲，近两个世纪的盐风化研究已经表明了它的强大功能和复杂性。本文试图结合各种文献，根据结合的信息对各种理论进行评估。彻底回顾了有关盐风化最常被引用的机理的理论方法，例如结晶盐的结晶，水合和热膨胀。可以理解的是，目前还没有关于该主题的普遍接受的硬，合理的理论信息。