Seismic Design of Masonry Structures

The goal of the course is to provide an introduction to materials, construction practices, structural behavior, analytical methods, and typical code requirements for the seismic design of new masonry buildings and the seismic evaluation and retrofit/rehabilitation of existing ones. Properties of masonry materials: brick, block, mortar, grout and reinforcement; Mechanics of masonry in compression: failure theories, compressive strength, elastic modulus; Behavior of masonry walls subjected to lateral forces and their role in building structural systems excited by earthquake motions: Unreinforced masonry walls: vertical and transverse loadings, shear walls; Reinforced masonry walls: axial force, flexure and shear design, detailing of reinforcement; Building systems: floor diaphragms, lateral-force distribution to shear walls; Assessment and rehabilitation of existing masonry buildings: sources of vulnerability, knowledge and survey of the structure, methods of analysis, performance criteria. Strategies for seismic rehabilitation/retrofitting.

1. Priestley and Paulay: Seismic design and assessment of reinforced concrete and masonry buildings, John Wiley and Sons, 1997 2. Masonry Structures: Behavior and Design, R. Drysdale, A. Hamid, and L. Baker, The Masonry Society 3. Earthquake resistant design of masonry buildings, Miha Tomazevic . - London : Imperial College, 1999. 4. Handouts made available during the course

Prerequisites: undergraduate course in reinforced concrete structures, fundamentals of structural dynamics and earthquake engineering