Domino Collapse on Historical Masonry Structure in Urban Settings

Abstract

This study investigates the seismic performance of the Adıyaman Grand Mosque, a historical masonry mosque in the East Anatolian Fault Zone, with emphasis on its response during the 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquake sequence. The two main objectives are: (i) to evaluate the mosque’s inherent seismic vulnerability in isolation, and (ii) to assess how the collapse of adjacent buildings may have aggravated damage.
The work combines nonlinear static and dynamic analyses in DIANA within a macro-modelling framework using a Total Strain Fixed Crack model calibrated from literature. Pushover analyses establish direction-dependent capacity, drift limits, and mechanism trends; nonlinear time-history analyses capture transient response under recorded ground motion. Neighbouring building collapse was examined through an exploratory numerical study in which a simplified sustained lateral pressure was applied to the south wall during the strong-motion window. The representation is non-calibrated and used to indicate trend-level shifts in demand rather than predictive values.
In isolation, results indicate moderate lateral capacity with strain localisation at openings and roof–wall/dome–drum junctions. Dynamic peaks remain within the pushover plateaus, and control-point drifts lie in a range consistent with no indications of triggering full collapse scenario, noting that principal-strain maps reflect upper-bound transient demand because cracks open and close cyclically. A simplified interaction case was included only as a sensitivity check; because it neglects contact transients, friction, eccentricity and vertical load transfer, no quantitative findings are reported from it. At most, the check suggests that adding a sustained lateral pressure could redistribute demand toward out-of-plane action on the loaded façade. These indications motivate future, higher-fidelity interaction modelling rather than supporting a firm conclusion here. Taken together with field evidence, this supports the interpretation that neighbouring collapse plausibly acted as a trigger for the most severe local failures, while the mosque alone would likely have sustained repairable damage.
The findings clarify seismic risk for historical masonry located in dense urban settings and motivate interaction-aware assessment, including explicit contact or bounded pulse models, to study cascading failure mechanisms.