Rehabilitation of Masonry Buildings with Fibre Reinforced Mortar: Practical Design Considerations Concerning Seismic Resistance

Abstract

Historic masonry buildings experience a high seismic vulnerability: innovative intervention strategies for strengthening, based on the use of fibre-based composite materials are gradually spreading. In particular, the coupling of fibre-based materials with mortar layers (Fibre Reinforced Mortar technique - FRM) evidenced a good chemical and mechanical compatibility with the historical masonry and proved to be effective for the enhancement of both in-plane and out-of-plane performances of masonry, contrasting the opening of cracks and improving both resistance and ductility. The resistant mechanisms that arise in FRM strengthened masonry walls subjected to in-plane horizontal actions are analyzed in the paper and a practical design approach to evaluate their performances is illustrated, evidencing the dominant collapse mode at the varying of the masonry characteristics. Some masonry walls are analyzed numerically and analytically, as “case study”.