Abstract
The brick-to-mortar bond often represents the weakest link leading to cracking and failure of masonry structures. For this reason, the in-situ characterization of masonry’s flexural bond behaviour (here defined as flexural bond strength and flexural bond fracture energy), is essential for the assessment of existing buildings. Among masonry bond properties, the flexural bond strength is commonly determined on-site, given the minimal invasiveness of the so-called bond wrench test. However, often the reliability of the results is questioned inputting their large variability to the operator. The present study discharges this assumption by comparing the accuracy of various testing set-ups (manually-operated vs computer-controlled set-ups). Additionally, the influence of the specimen’s type (with/without head joints and couplets vs wallet) on the flexural bond strength assessment is studied providing preliminary correlation factors that can be of help for the in-situ measurement on single-wythe masonry. In addition, to obtain a complete description of the bond behaviour, a new test set-up able to determine the post-peak response is presented. Considerations regarding the dissipated bond fracture energy and its relation to the tensile fracture energy are provided with the support of literature data.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
