Nonlinear Analysis Of Some Typical Elements Of ABasilica Plan Church

Abstract

In this paper the strength and deformation capacity of the main structural elements of a basilica church are studied via static nonlinear analysis. In particular, the nave arcades, the cross section at the triumphal arch and the end wall of chancel are analysed through FEM, using the general purpose software program ABAQUS. The push-over analyses performed on the main structural elements of the church provide useful information on the non-linear behaviour, the stress pattern, the collapse mode and the ultimate strength. These information are particularly valuable since the structural schemes herein analysed are very repetitive within basilica type churches, which represent a large portion of the Italian cultural heritage. The results, in terms of ultimate loads, have been compared with the collapse loads obtained through the application of the limit analysis. This comparison has allowed to demonstrate the capacity of ABAQUS code to provide reliable results and to investigate on the effect of material properties on the ultimate capacity.