Dynamic Analysis of Confined Masonry Structures for Residential Buildings under Seismic Conditions

Abstract

Abstract: In India, unreinforced brick masonry and reinforced cement concrete are the go-to technologies when it comes to construction of modern residential buildings, with the design applications ranging from one-story nuclear family houses to multi-story apartment buildings housing several families. However, each major natural disaster in India has exposed several ‘chinks in the armour’ linked to both of these widely employed construction techniques. Enter confined masonry. Confined masonry offers a substitute to both, unreinforced brick masonry and reinforced concrete framed residential buildings for applications in disaster prone areas of the world while keeping the cost under check and optimizing the structural performance. Confined masonry has evolved over the last century through an informal process based on its satisfactory performance in past, mostly in countries with high seismic activity like Indonesia, Mexico and Turkey. It is used for both non-engineered and engineered construction as its field applications range from one-story single-family dwellings to six-story apartment buildings. Some countries have even adopted design provisions and construction guidelines for confined masonry in their building codes. The success and implementation of building technologies is totally dependent on the local conditions like the availability and cost of building materials, the skill level of construction labour and the availability of construction tools and equipment. The fact that confined masonry construction looks similar to reinforced frame construction with masonry infill walls and that it uses the same components, i.e., masonry infills, tie-beams and tie-columns, helps in an easy transition to adopt confined masonry. Although confined masonry construction practice doesn’t require any advanced construction equipment or an extra skillset, it is necessary to lay emphasis on the quality of the construction for its satisfactory performance. Hence, to optimize the quality of confined masonry structures, this thesis employs the use of a modern easy-to-learn-and-use structural software known as ETABS. Keywords: Confined Masonry, RCC Frame, Unreinforced Brick Masonry, ETABS, Seismic Performance.