Historical Masonry Churches Research Articles

Different Soil-Structure Interaction Modelling Strategies for Seismic Analysis of a Masonry Church

ABSTRACT Masonry structures can be damaged different external reasons such as war, flood, earthquake etc. For protecting and transfer to the next generations, these structures can be examined detailed. Finite element analysis has generally been used for the seismic evaluation of masonry structures. The fixed base assumption has been used in traditional finite element analysis of masonry structures. Interacting with the surrounding soil and structure was generally ignored. The seismic behavior of masonry structures is significantly influenced by the soil-structure interaction (SSI). There are various soil structure interaction modelling strategies in the recent studies. In this paper, the dimensions, mechanical properties and material model of the soil are considered constant. One of them had no soil-structure interaction. The others, roller support case, fixed support case, absorbing boundary case, free field columns and Winkler supports. Variations in the seismic response of a historical masonry church were investigated using 4 different SSI models and a fixed base (SSI ignored) model. Nonlinear time history analyses were employed for the finite element analysis. The soil borehole provided the material characteristics of the surrounding soil. According to the analysis results, higher response amplitudes were obtained when SSI was considered.

Earthquake response and damage patterns assessment of two historical masonry churches with bell tower

The earthquake response of two historical masonry churches is investigated through a finite element macro-modelling approach and non-linear dynamic analyses. The main aim of the study is to evaluate the church walls effects on the seismic performance and damage patterns of slender bell towers, which are analyzed also in the isolated configuration to perform a comprehensive comparison with the confined counterpart. The results of the numerical simulations point out that both the churches, which present different sizes, structural features and dynamic properties, are highly vulnerable to low-to-moderate seismic actions and the bell tower is one of the most critical elements, suffering widespread damage due to also the interactions effects with the neighboring church walls. The presence of shorter adjacent structural elements significantly modifies the main structural dynamic characteristics, seismic response and damage patterns of the bell tower. For both the confined towers, the first cracks originate in the connection regions with the adjacent church walls: on the other hand, for both the isolated towers, the first cracks originate mainly at the base. An advance of damage onset is also detected in the case of confined towers with respect to isolated towers. At the end of the numerical analyses, for both the case studies, the confined configurations show more remarkable damage patterns and larger values of energy density dissipated by tensile damage than the isolated ones, presenting relevant cracks concentrations mostly near the connection regions with the church walls and in the middle-upper part of the bell tower. The results of this study emphasize the paramount importance of taking into account the interactions effects with the surrounding church walls for a proper damage and failure mechanisms assessment of bell towers within the church context: simplified analyses performed on isolated configurations without considering such interaction effects may lead to significant underestimations of damage for the bell tower inside the church.

Seismic assessment of typical historical masonry churches in the Banat region, Romania - Part II

This work focuses on the built heritage in Romania, with particular attention to five Orthodox masonry churches located in the Banat region, whose structural configuration is characterized by a unique nave and a bell tower included into the main façade. In a companion paper the seismic numerical investigations of Romanian masonry churches according to the Romanian regulations is presented. In this paper, firstly, a seismic performance comparison of the five churches with simplified risk assessment methods is conducted. Then, the preliminary results of a case study, obtained with both a macro-elements approach and a FEM model, are illustrated and commented. The numerical results here discussed belong to on-going research campaign addressed to highlight the main characteristics of the seismic performance of the Romanian churches, also including the damage observed under seismic events, as well as to compare the results to each other.

Seismic Assessment of Typical Historical Masonry Churches in Banat region, Romania - Part I

The Banat seismic area in Romania is characterized by shallow earthquakes that generate in historic buildings different failure mechanisms. Religious buildings represent one of the most important historical buildings in Romania, with interesting structures and beautiful architectural details, but many of them in a poor conservation state.The failure mechanisms of the historical Romanian Baroque churches recorded after the earthquakes of 1990 and 1991 are due to the high value of the vertical components of the seismic action, the reduced number of cycles.The article presents the values of the seismic risk factor determined for three churches: Chizatau, Beregsau Mare and Birda churches with the ETABS software according to the Romanian design code P100-3 / 2019 in which the effects of the vertical seismic components are not taken into analysis.

An Overview of the Historical Retrofitting Interventions on Churches in Central Italy

The seismic sequence occurring in Central Italy in 2016 represents a new test benchmark for historical masonry churches and a chance for a better comprehension of their structural behavior under earthquake actions. The many earthquakes that took place in the past have led to stratifications of repair and retrofitting interventions that sometimes worsened the structural behavior, especially when resulting in the introduction of elements not compatible with the churches’ original layout. Within this framework, the present paper intends to provide a critical review of the main interventions carried out in the churches of Central Italy for mitigating their seismic vulnerability and to evaluate their effectiveness in light of the damage surveyed on a representative sample of masonry churches after the 2016–2017 seismic sequence. The work is organized into three parts: (1) historical analysis of the territory; (2) review of the featured interventions; (3) critical appraisal of the interventions in relation to the surveyed data and assessment of their effectiveness. The goal of the work is to shed light on the correct design of retrofitting interventions in ancient masonry structures in order to enhance the structural safety of such artefacts without compromising their historical and cultural value.

Thermographic investigations and dynamic identification tests for non-destructive structural assessment and enhanced FE modelling of a historical iron-strengthened masonry church

Thermographic investigations and dynamic identification tests for non-destructive structural assessment and enhanced FE modelling of a historical iron-strengthened masonry church

The influence of the geometrical features on the seismic response of historical churches reinforced by different cross lam roof-solutions

Recent Italian earthquakes have shown the seismic vulnerability of many typical historical masonry churches characterized by one nave and wooden roofs. Under transverse earthquake, the nave transverse response of this kind of churches can be influenced by the geometrical and material features. To increase the seismic performance, strengthening interventions aimed to pursue the global box-behavior by the realization of dissipative roof-structure represent a valid strategy, especially to avoid out-of-plane mechanisms. In this way, the roof structure must be able to represent a tool for the damped rocking of the perimeter walls. Cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels with calibrated metal connections have been recently adopted in experimental tests as a valid solution to obtain a roof-diaphragm with ductile behavior, satisfying the conservative restoration criteria at the same time. In this paper, after a description of the numerical approach for the damped rocking mechanism for one nave configuration church, the effectiveness of different CLT based roof-diaphragms in the nave transverse response is investigated for four historical churches. The seismic responses are performed by comparative dynamic nonlinear analyses and the results are shown in terms of displacements and shear actions transferred to the façade. The influence of the geometrical features of the churches on the nave transversal response is deepened by sensitivity analyses with the aim to predict the displacements and shear variations under the same earthquake excitation.

Evaluation of The Effect of Abscissa Part on Seismic Response of Historical Masonry Church

Evaluation of The Effect of Abscissa Part on Seismic Response of Historical Masonry Church

Onsite Testing for Nonlinear Analysis of an Earthquake Damaged Historical Church in Italy

Analysis and diagnosis of historical masonry buildings are frequently affected by uncertainties due to unexpected behaviors caused by cumulative damage, material decay or transformations. This research work follows a methodology in the structural analysis of the historical masonry church of San Filippo Neri in Macerata, severely damaged after the Central Italy Earthquake occurred in October 2016. The PRiSMa laboratory (Proof testing and Research in Structures and Materials) of Roma Tre University carried out an extensive onsite testing campaign, including NDT tests as sonic tomography and endoscopy, and minor destructive technique as double flat jack test, together with dynamic monitoring under ambient vibrations, to investigate the state of conservation of the building. The onsite testing results were then implemented in an accurate finite element model, which was tuned up by means of global dynamic response provided by OMA (operational modal analysis) and updated, after the sensitivity analysis, through the Douglas-Reid method. Finally, nonlinear static and dynamic analyses were performed to investigate the state of damage of the church and reduce its uncertainties. This methodology will support the design of strengthening measures to achieve a higher level of safety concerning both needs of protection and conservation, thereby avoiding ineffectual or amiss interventions.

Damage Assessment of Historical Masonry Churches Subjected to Moderate Intensity Seismic Shaking

An earthquake of magnitude 4.3 MW struck Cosenza (Calabria region, South Italy) and its immediate area on 24 February 2020. Although no damage was reported to ordinary masonry buildings, the ancient masonry churches suffered widespread damage. The herein article presents an analysis of the failures suffered by monumental buildings (e.g., churches) following a moderate seismic action. The contribution is based on the in situ damage observation of 14 churches, with a dating ranging from the 12th to 20th century. The study consists of a first phase, in which the different damage modes are identified, describing their causes and effects, and a second phase that correlates the damage detected to the main parameters that influence the seismic response of the churches (geometric characteristics, boundary condition, masonry and floor organization, past interventions, etc.), regardless of the state of conservation that was discrete for all buildings before the telluric event. From the rapid visual survey, the “weight” of each seismic parameter on the type of damage detected was then established. The past “retrofitting” interventions were decisive in the response of the ancient structure, with particular regard to those that made an aggravation of seismic mass and an increase in stiffness.

Historical masonry churches diagnosis supported by an analytic-hierarchy-process-based decision support system

<p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-GB">The structural and anti-seismic performances of historical masonry churches are related not only to structural damage and masonry quality but also to other criticalities that can jeopardise the connections, wooden elements, and non-structural elements. As such, the technical and scientific communities are interested in the development of fast visual-survey approaches for assessing these issues and for performing exhaustive diagnostics by considering all the parameters affecting the building performance.</span></p><p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-GB">In this paper, a new procedure for performing rapid visual surveys and the diagnostics of masonry buildings using a set of condition ratings is proposed. The proposed novel approach includes three synergistically related techniques: i) the analytic hierarchy process method for measuring and analysing both qualitative and quantitative data during a visual survey, ii) a suitable survey form to perform a rapid visual inspection implementable in a decision support system (DSS), and iii) a DSS procedure to provide a powerful computerised tool that would be useful in large-scale data acquisition. Finally, to demonstrate the potential of the proposed approach, the Romanesque masonry church SS. Salvatore in Capurso, Italy,</span><span lang="EN-GB">is analysed. A comparison with a standard diagnostic workflow is also presented to validate the procedure and to emphasise the advantages of the novel diagnostics.</span></p><p class="Abstract"> </p>

Structural analysis of historical masonry churches: the case study of S. Giuseppe delle Scalze (Naples, Italy)

Structural analysis of historical masonry churches: the case study of S. Giuseppe delle Scalze (Naples, Italy)

Structural analysis of historical masonry churches: the case study of S. Giuseppe delle Scalze (Naples, Italy)

Structural analysis represents a valid tool to evaluate the seismic capacity of existing structures and to plan retrofit strategies. Howsoever, structural modelling performed on existing masonry bu...

Seismic damage and fragility assessment of ancient masonry churches located in central Chile

An assessment of damage and seismic fragility of historical unreinforced masonry churches located in Chile’s central valley was carried out employing the results of a field survey of 106 ancient churches, after the 2010 Maule earthquake. The observed damage was correlated with recurrent failure mechanisms of unreinforced masonry structures, by taking into account 22 local mechanisms involving macro-elements on these churches. The average damage level suffered by each church was computed considering the global and local behaviors of the structures through a damage index computed as a weighted mean of the levels of damage observed for each mechanism. The results of this damage index method are used to obtain Probability Mass Functions and suitable probabilistic tools are used to propose Empirical Fragility Curves (EFCs) for these structures. The EFCs are directly usable by stakeholders involved in risk assessment aimed to the prioritization of possible future damage mitigation strategies and other decision making processes relative to this historical heritage.

AHP-based methodology integrating modern information technologies for historical masonry churches diagnosis

Surveys conducted in the aftermath of recent earthquakes have shown that the structural and anti-seismic performances of historical masonry churches are related not only to structural damages and masonry quality but also to other key features such as effectiveness of connections, damages of wooden elements or criticalities related to humidity. Technical and scientific communities are interested in developing or improving existing procedures for the fast-visual survey and diagnostics in order to measure and analyze all the parameters affecting the building performance. In this paper a new procedure, that can be implemented in a Decision Support System (DSS) based on the Analytic Hierarchy Processes (AHP), is developed to perform a rapid visual survey and diagnostics of masonry building through a set of condition ratings. The originality of the presented work is fourfold: 1) the AHP allows to include in the analysis qualitative and quantitative data such as the quality of masonry and connections effectiveness; 2) the proposed survey and diagnostics performed by suitable condition ratings allow an extensive application in order to identify the most damaged buildings that require more detailed structural investigations; 3) the proposed AHP-based approach is integrated in a DSS to provide a powerful computerized tool, useful to large scale data acquisition; 4) the comparison with a standard diagnostics is performed to validate the procedure and emphasize the advantages of the novel diagnostics.

Integrated Seismic Vulnerability Assessment of Historical Masonry Churches Including Architectural and Artistic Assets Based on Macro-element Approach

ABSTRACT Masonry churches represent a significant construction typology at risk from earthquakes, as clearly shown by recent seismic events. For a quick assessment of the vulnerability of historical churches, a very effective method is the well-known form for the evaluation of damage and vulnerability based the macro-element approach. Anyway, in the calculation of the vulnerability index of the method intangible aspects related to architectural, historical and artistic value are not included. This paper proposes a procedure that combines the above-mentioned vulnerability analysis with the evaluation of architectural and artistic assets such as frescoes, statues and paintings, by applying the Analytic Hierarchy Process. A site test, involving eight churches in Valencia (Spain) and Tuscany (Italy) regions, shows how important it is to provide a complete overview of a church’s structural condition that includes its artworks in order to create a priority scale for the assessment, retrofitting and protection of existing masonry churches.

Hybrid seismic base isolation of a historical masonry church using unbonded fiber reinforced elastomeric isolators and shape memory alloy wires

One of the most promising devices for seismic base isolation of structures is the Unbonded Fiber Reinforced Elastomeric Isolator (UFREI) due to its low manufacturing cost and horizontal stiffness. This paper investigates the possibility of combining UFREIs and shape memory alloy (SMA) wires to increase the energy dissipation capacity of the isolation system for the seismic protection of a historical masonry church. Detailed 3D finite element (FE) analyses are performed to characterize the response of UFREIs under cyclic displacements. The behavior of SMA is simulated through a thermomechanical constitutive model implemented in a user-defined material (UMAT) subroutine available in the software package Abaqus. To reduce the computational effort in non-linear dynamic analyses of large isolated structures, an Abaqus user element (UEL) is developed to represent the 3D behavior of the isolation system proposed in this study. Non-linear dynamic time history analyses are then carried out to evaluate the seismic response of a historical masonry church in different configurations (fixed-base model and model equipped with different base isolation systems) for moderate and severe seismic intensity levels. Numerical results show that the damage observed in the masonry church can be considerably reduced through the insertion of UFREIs. The utilization of SMA wires with a specific pre-strain significantly increases the energy dissipation capacity of the base isolation system and decreases the horizontal displacements of the masonry church.

Numerical approaches for cross-laminated timber roof structure optimization in seismic retrofitting of a historical masonry church

In recent earthquakes, historical masonry churches have demonstrated to be vulnerable structures. Strengthening interventions based on the introduction of a roof diaphragm can be considered a valid solution in order to obtain a box-behaviour of this kind of structures. Among the possible different roof-diaphragm solutions, the wooden based ones represent an effective alternative, satisfying the conservation requirements in terms of material compatibility and reversibility, together with a significant improvement of the structural behaviour. After a short literature review of all the wooden based strengthening interventions, the possibility to consider cross-laminated timber (CLT) as a roof-diaphragm strengthening for existing churches is discussed in this paper. The effectiveness of this retrofitting solution is inquired numerically by means of different kind of linear and nonlinear analysis, focusing on the role played by the steel connections among the different CLT panels. The Basilica of Collemaggio has been chosen as case study to test the possibility to apply CLT roof diaphragm on an existing masonry church, adopting different modelling approaches. A short discussion on the optimisation of the steel connection layout is also presented.

Base seismic isolation of a historical masonry church using fiber reinforced elastomeric isolators

This paper investigates the possibility of improving the seismic performance of a small historical masonry church using fiber reinforced elastomeric isolators in bonded (BFREI) and unbonded (UFREI) applications. Detailed three-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) models are used to characterize the behavior of the two types of FREIs. An Abaqus User Element (UEL) is developed to simulate the 3D behavior of FREIs for large scale seismic analyses of complex isolated structures. The results of cyclic shear analyses show that the proposed UEL model can accurately predict the FREIs behavior obtained through detailed 3D FE models. A series of non-linear dynamic analyses are performed to investigate the seismic response of a small historical masonry church in the original and base-isolated configurations employing both BFREIs and UFREIs. Numerical results show that the fixed-base model of the church experiences severe and widespread damage, while UFREIs are found to be effective in significantly reducing the damage level of the church when subjected to moderate-to-high seismic actions. Moreover, it can be observed that both the isolator types satisfy the maximum lateral displacement requirements reported in the literature.

Damage assessment and partial failure mechanisms activation of historical masonry churches under seismic actions: Three case studies in Mantua

Abstract The structural safety and seismic performance assessment of historical masonry churches belonging to cultural heritage is currently a topic of increasing interest in Italy. Recent Italian seismic events have proved that severe damage or collapse can be caused to such typology of structures even by earthquakes of small-to-moderate magnitude. This paper describes the damage occurred in three important historical masonry churches of the outstanding cultural heritage in Mantua, Northern Italy, after the 2012 Emilia earthquake and presents the results of extensive numerical investigations carried out on detailed FE models with an elasto-plastic damage constitutive law for masonry. Historical and documentary research, on-site surveys and visual inspections were fundamental to identify the critical elements and obtain a thorough detailed knowledge of the churches for the development of accurate numerical models. The results of advanced FE analyses were used to investigate the causes of the crack patterns observed after the earthquake, indicating that the damage distribution detected in the churches can be simulated satisfactorily by the numerical approach adopted. Moreover, this study provides additional information on the seismic response of the three churches analyzed under higher PGA than those registered in Mantua during the 2012 Emilia earthquake. Comparisons among the seismic response of the churches are made in terms of predicted damage distribution, maximum normalized displacements and energy density dissipated by tensile damage.