Feasibility of confined masonry design in Azores

• Main Author: Braga, Alfredo Manuel Gonçalves Silva
• Publication Date: 2008
• Other Authors: Estêvão, João Manuel Carvalho
• Language: eng
• Source: Repositórios Científicos de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (RCAAP)
• Download full: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/7185
• topic: Confined masonry; Resistant walls; Shear strength test; Render contribution

In the recent years, small size buildings built with resistant confined masonry demonstrated an acceptable behaviour due to earthquakes actions. On the other hand, many experimental studies have been corroborating these findings. As proved in recent work, and according to the Eurocodes, the security can not be accomplished when using confined masonry made with Portuguese traditional clay units. In this context, the aim of the present work was to determine the feasibility of construction using confined masonry, in small buildings, made with hollow aggregate concrete units and designed according to Eurocodes 6 and 8. These results can be relevant for the Azores because this type of construction is still being used in the region. The structural evaluation of the dwellings is supported on tests made at the laboratories of Civil Engineering Department of University of Algarve, mainly to characterize the shear strength of masonry. The contribution of cement render to the shear resistance of confined masonry was also verified.