Critical analysis on the use of the shove test for investigating the shear-sliding behavior of brick masonry

The shove test (ASTM Standard C1531) is an experimental technique aimed at studying the shear-sliding behavior of brick masonry. It can be executed according to various testing methods that differ in the way the vertical compression load is applied and in the way bricks and/or joints are locally removed for inserting jacks. One of the most...

A correlation study to support material characterisation of typical Dutch masonry structures

To date, several different structural representations of masonry are available for use in the numerical and analytical assessment methods, each calling for a distinct level of refinement regarding the material input. To determine material properties, in terms of strength, stiffness, and toughness under compression, bending, and shear loading,...

Material characterisation of existing masonry: A strategy to determine strength, stiffness and toughness properties for structural analysis

Understanding the behaviour of unreinforced masonry (URM) structures requires in-depth insight into the mechanical properties of its constituents and their interaction under compression, tension, and shear loading. As a result, a complete picture of masonry characteristics, accounting for its full nonlinear response and its statistical...

A Comparative study on the evaluation of different testing techniques: Evaluating the mechanical properties of masonry

To accurately assess the performance of existing unreinforced masonry (URM) structures, the mechanical characteristics of masonry under compressive loading are required. The compression properties of existing URM can be evaluated through different methods, either performing destructive tests (DTs) or slightly destructive tests (SDTs). DTs can be...

Influence of the behaviour of calcium silicate brick and element masonry on the lateral capacity of structures

In recent years induced seismicity in the Netherlands considerably increased. This phenomenon has a wide impact on the built environment, which is mainly composed by unreinforced masonry (URM) structures. These buildings were not designed for seismic loading, and present peculiar characteristics include very slender walls (100 mm thickness and 2...

A multiscale experimental characterisation of Dutch unreinforced masonry buildings

In recent years, induced seismicity in the north of the Netherlands significantly increased. As a consequence, the seismic assessment of the built environment, which mainly consists of unreinforced masonry (URM) structures not designed for seismic loads, became of high relevance. Within this context, an extensive multiscale testing program has...

Material tests for the characterisation of replicated solid clay brick masonry

Material characterisation of replicated calcium silicate element masonry

Literature review on the assessment of masonry properties by tests on core samples

Starting point in this research is to find a quick and non-destructive method to characterize the mechanical properties of existing masonry. Tests on cylindrical cores have been recently introduced as a novel in-situ testing method to identify the properties of existing clay brick masonry. Currently, some researchers reported promising results,...

Computational modeling of the cyclic pushover test on a calcium silicate element masonry assemblage

Induced seismicity in the Groningen region of the Netherlands has led to a large scale testing campaign on Calcium silicate element masonry structures at Delft University of Technology. An overview of the finite element analysis (FEA) using an implicit solver, on the full scale quasi-static cyclic pushover test performed on a two-storey calcium...