• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.419-439
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• 2014

In this study, the structural performance of a seven span masonry arch bridge was evaluated. Investigations were performed on Aspendos (Belkis) Masonry Arch Bridge which was located on road of Aspendos Acropolis City in Antalya, Turkey. The old bridge was constructed in the early of fourth century AD, but it was exposed to the earthquakes in this region and the overloading by the river water. The old bridge was severely damaged and collapsed by probably an earthquake many years ago and a new bridge was then reconstructed on the remains of this old bridge by Seljuk in the 13th century. The bridge has also been affected from overflowing especially in the spring of each year, so some protective measures should be taken for this monumental bridge. Therefore, the structural performance under these loading has to be known. For this purpose, an initial finite element model was developed for the bridge and it was calibrated according to ambient vibration test results. After that, it was analyzed for different load cases such as dead, live, earthquake and overflow. Three load combinations were taken into account by deriving from these load cases. The displacements and the stresses for these combination cases were attained and compared with each other. The structural performance of Aspendos Masonry Arch Bridge was determined by considering the demand-capacity ratio for the tensile stress of the mortar used in Aspendos Masonry Arch Bridge. After these investigations, some concluding remarks and offers were presented at the end of this study.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.68 no.4
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• pp.423-442
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• 2018

In this paper, masonry infilled reinforced concrete (RC) frames are analyzed through a probabilistic approach. A macro-modeling technique, based on an equivalent diagonal pin-jointed strut, has been resorted to for modelling the stiffening contribution of the masonry panels. Since it is quite difficult to decide which mechanical characteristics to assume for the diagonal struts in such simplified model, the strut width is here considered as a random variable, whose stochastic characterization stems from a wide set of empirical expressions proposed in the literature. The stochastic analysis of the masonry infilled RC frame is conducted via the Probabilistic Transformation Method by employing a set of space transformation laws of random vectors to determine the probability density function (PDF) of the system response in a direct manner. The knowledge of the PDF of a set of response indicators, including displacements, bending moments, shear forces, interstory drifts, opens an interesting discussion about the influence of the uncertainty of the masonry infills and the resulting implications in a design process.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.473-485
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• 2018

The buildings of architectural and cultural heritage are mostly built with stone or brick wall elements, which are connected using limestone or limestone cement mortar, without a full knowledge of the mechanical properties of masonry structures. The compatibility of heritage masonry buildings with valid technical specifications and the rules for earthquake resistance implies the need for construction work such as repairs, strengthening or reconstruction. By strengthening the masonry buildings, ductility and bearing capacity are increased to a level, which, in the case of the earthquake design, allows for some damage to happen, however the structure retains sufficient usability and bearing capacity without the possibility of collapse. Comparison between traditional and modern techniques for seismic strengthening of masonry buildings is given according to their effects, benefits and disadvantages. Recent Croatian provisions provided for heritage buildings enabling deviation of technical specifications are discussed.

• Proceedings of the Korea Concrete Institute Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.193-196
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• 2008

This paper presents an experimental study to investigate enhanced performance of the masonry walls strengthened in shear and ductility using honeycomb steel mesh. The performance of masonry walls strengthened with steel mesh will compare with unreinforced masonry walls to show the performance of reinforced masonry walls. According to the experiment, it is expected that this system is effective to enhance the shear strength and ductility of the masonry walls.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.641-656
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• 2016

Reinforced concrete frame buildings with masonry infill walls are one of the most popular structural systems in the world. In most cases, the effects of masonry infill walls are not considered in structural models. The results of earthquakes show that infill walls have a significant effect on the seismic response of buildings. In some cases, the buildings collapsed as a result of the formation of a soft story. This study developed a simple method, called corner opening, by replacing the corner of infill walls with a very flexible material to enhance the structural behavior of walls. To evaluate the proposed method a series of experiments were conducted on masonry infill wall and reinforced concrete frames with and without corner openings. Two 1:4 scale masonry infill walls with and without corner openings were tested under diagonal tension or shear strength and two RC frames with full infill walls and with corner opening infill walls were tested under monotonic horizontal loading up to a drift level of 2.5%. The experimental results revealed that the proposed method reduced the strength of infill wall specimens but considerably enhanced the ductility of infill wall specimens in the diagonal tension test. Moreover, the corner opening in infill walls prevented the slid shear failure of the infill wall in RC frames with infill walls.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.233-245
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• 2008

For historical masonry structures existing in the Mediterranean area, structural strengthening is of primary importance due to the continuous earthquake threat that is posed on them. Proper retrofitting of historical structures involves a thorough understanding of their structural pathology, before proceeding with any intervention measures. In this paper, a methodology is presented for the evaluation of the actual state of historical masonry structures, which can provide a useful tool for the seismic response assessment before and after the retrofitting. The methodology is mainly focused on the failure and vulnerability analysis of masonry structures using the finite element method. Using this methodology the retrofitting of historical structures with innovative techniques is investigated. The innovative technique presented here involves the exploitation of Shape Memory Alloy prestressed bars. This type of intervention is proposed because it ensures increased reversibility and minimization of interventions, in comparison with conventional retrofitting methods. In this paper, a case study is investigated for the demonstration of the proposed methodologies and techniques, which comprises a masonry Byzantine church and a masonry Cistern. Prestressed SMA alloy bars are placed into the load-bearing system of the structure. The seismic response of the non-retrofitted and the retrofitted finite element models are compared in terms of seismic energy dissipation and displacements diminution.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.6 no.6
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• pp.689-713
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• 2014

The seismic vulnerability of stone masonry buildings is studied on the basis of their fragility curves. In order to account for out-of-plane failure modes, normally disregarded in past studies, linear static Finite Element analysis in 3D of prototype regular buildings is performed using a nonlinear biaxial failure criterion for masonry. More than 1100 analyses are carried out, so as to cover the practical range of the most important parameters, namely the number of storeys, percentage of side length in exterior walls taken up by openings, wall thickness, plan dimensions and number of interior walls, type of floor and pier height-to-length ratio. Results are presented in the form of damage and fragility curves. The fragility curves correspond well to the damage observed in masonry buildings after strong earthquakes and are in good agreement with other fragility curves in the literature. They confirm what is already known, namely that buildings with stiff floors or higher percentage of load-bearing walls are less vulnerable, and that large openings, taller storeys, larger number of storeys, higher wall slenderness and higher ratio of clear height to horizontal length of walls increase the vulnerability, but show also by how much.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.241-264
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• 2013

Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the progressive and rapid spread of reinforced concrete (RC) has led to the adoption of mixed masonry-RC solutions, such as the confined masonry. However, together with structures conceived with a definite role for earthquake behaviour, the spreading of RC technology has caused the birth of mixed solutions inspired more by functional aspects than by structural ones, such as: internal masonry walls replaced by RC frames, RC walls inserted to build staircases or raising made from RC frames. Usually, since these interventions rise from a spontaneous build-up, any capacity design or ductility concepts are neglected being designed only to bear vertical loads: thus, the vulnerability assessment of this class becomes crucial. To investigate the non-linear seismic response of these structures, suitable models and effective numerical tools are needed. Among the various modelling approaches proposed in the literature and codes, the authors focus their attention on the equivalent frame model. After a brief description of the adopted model and its numerical validation, the authors aim to point out some specific peculiarities of the seismic response of mixed masonry-RC structures and their repercussions on safety verification procedures (referring in particular way to the non-linear static ones). In particular, the results of non-linear static analyses performed parametrically to various configurations representative of different interventions are discussed.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.239-253
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• 1992

The masonry walls, having the characters of cheap construction materials and relatively easy construction, have been widely used in supporting slopes. However, the necessity of reinforcing methods to improve the stability of masonry walls has been continuously required due to the collapses taken place quite often. In the present study, a new method to improve the stability of masonry walls was developed based on the soil nailing system proven effective in strengthening the surrounding soils. The developed method could be used in reinforcing the old masonry walls structually unsafe as well as in constructing new masonry walls. The effects of pore water pressures due to heavy rainfalls were included in the developed method and also the chart practically applicable to design was presented, together with a design example.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2019.05a
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• pp.234-235
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• 2019

In the stacking and pitching items of the stone masonry and demolition process presented by 2018's standard of estimate, 7 estimating standards are presented according to the depth of masonry stone, and it is presented that the quantity per unit increases as the depth of masonry stone grows. As a result of analyzing the application status in the site, it is shown that 2 or 3 stones are mainly used according to the stone sizes regardless of the depth of masonry stone, and that as the size of the stone becomes larger, the quantity per unit decreases due to the size per square meter(㎡). Also, in most of sites, machine construction is mainly carried out by excavators with clampers attached to them. Therefore, in the 2019's application standard of estimate, it is analyzed that the size is simplified down to 3 sizes reflecting the site application status and that it is revised as a standard reflecting the result that as the stone size becomes bigger, the productivity increases.