Shear Behavior of Multi Leafs Masonry Panels with Transversal Connections

Abstract

The historical masonry buildings are generally characterized by a load-bearing structure constituted by walls that should resist to both gravitational and horizontal actions. In several existing constructions, masonry panels are made by two external leafs with higher mechanical properties and an inner core with very low, or even negligible, mechanical characteristics. In some cases the connection between the external leafs was provided by inserting a certain number of bricks in the transversal direction (namely diatones); while sometimes, the leafs were totally independent. Often in the case of horizontal forces, as those due to earthquakes, the multi-leafs walls collapse has been observed, because of the leafs separation. Nowadays, there are different connecting systems available in the market and utilized to guarantee the collaboration of the external leafs, in order to finally improve the wall bearing capacity.In this scenario, the present paper is aimed to investigate the shear strength of small-scale multi-leafs panels, coupled with different types of connector, such as: diatones, L-shaped glass; glass and steel rope and helical steel bars. In plane shear tests have been performed in order to evaluate the shear stress-strain relationship. The results are herein reported and discussed, aiming to determine the effectiveness of the different connections systems.