Construction materials’ properties: Investigation of unreinforced masonry buildings in the cities of Tirana, Durres and Elbasan

Abstract

This study reports the results of investigation on the unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings that have been existing in the Albanian heritage building stock. Material data for this investigation was sampled from different cities within central Albania. The sampling process was then followed by compilation of a database of various materials that were used in masonry structures. To carry out the investigation various destructive and non-destructive tests were used. The results show that bricks have higher values than KTP requirements, while mortar values are lower than KTP requirements. Although several studies (from various countries, such as New Zealand, USA, Europe and India) reported on material properties of URM structures, this study provides a country-specific diagnosis and a database that incorporates a significant information on material properties used in URM buildings in Albania.