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Improving out-of-plane
strength and ductility of unreinforced masonry walls in
low-rise buildings by centrally applied FRP strip
Mürsel Erdal
Gazi
University, Technical Education Faculty, Construction
Department, 06500, Teknikokullar, Ankara, Turkey. E-mail:
merdal@gazi.edu.tr.
Tel: +90 312 2028870. Fax: +90 312 2120059.
Accepted
30 December, 2009. |
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The
seismic collapse of a low-rise unreinforced masonry (URM)
building is initiated by the out-of-plane failure of walls
at roof level. The theoretical basis of this engineering
problem is presented. The available strength and ductility
of a URM wall is presented, which was tested under reversed
loads to simulate seismic effects. It was seen that both
ductility and strength need to be improved. Another
geometrically similar URM test wall which is retrofitted by
FRP was constructed. Test results showed significant
increases in both strength and ductility. The final failure
came by the tensile rupture of the FRP strip.
Keywords:
Earthquake, masonry, seismic, out-of-plane, FRP. |
