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Application of alkali-activated materials (AAM) in seismic and combined energy and seismic retrofitting of beam-type masonry walls

In- and out-of-plane behavior

Journal Article (2025)
Author(s)

Lazar D. Azdejkovic (University of Patras)

Thanasis C. Triantafillou (University of Patras)

Catherine G. Papanicolaou (University of Patras)

L.C. Miranda de Lima Junior (TU Delft - Materials and Environment)

Research Group
Materials and Environment
DOI related publication
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2025.120207
More Info
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Publication Year
2025
Language
English
Research Group
Materials and Environment
Volume number
334
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Abstract

The application of alkali-activated materials (AAM) based on metakaolin, fly ash and ladle furnace slag in seismic retrofitting of beam-type unreinforced masonry (URM) walls with textile reinforced mortars (TRM) was investigated in this study. Additionally, a combined seismic and energy retrofitting scheme comprising an extruded polystyrene (XPS) thermal insulation, alkali-activated or traditional cementitious mortar and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR)-coated glass-fiber textile was studied on beam-type URM walls. A total of 12 wall specimens made of perforated fired-clay bricks were subjected to in- and out-of-plane cyclic tests. Seismic retrofitting with AAM-based TRM led to a substantial increase of load-bearing capacity, up to 70 %, while the combined energy and seismic retrofitting increased the energy dissipation capacity by at least 8 times for both in- and out-of-plane loading. Durability of the TRM jackets consisted of SBR-coated glass-fiber textile and AAM mortar was studied experimentally and at the matrix-fiber interface with Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS). A severe impact of the AAM mortar mix in fresh state on SBR-coated glass-fiber textile was quantified through a set of uniaxial tensile tests and confirmed at a microscopic level. Alkali-activated materials pose a great potential in becoming an effective and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional cementitious materials in structural repair and retrofitting applications. However, to systematically utilize the AAM-based TRM strengthening configurations studied here, the addressed durability issues need to be resolved.