Behavior and Design of Masonry Strengthened with Steel-Wire–Reinforced Cementitious Matrix under Flexure
Publication: Journal of Composites for Construction
Volume 27, Issue 2
Abstract
Overlays consisting of welded steel-wire mesh embedded in an inorganic matrix have shown promising results in improving the flexural behavior of masonry in terms of strength, ductility, and energy dissipation. The flexural capacity of masonry strengthened with steel-wire–reinforced cementitious matrix (SWRCM) can be influenced by various factors, such as the percentage of reinforcement, strength of cementitious matrix, and masonry compressive strength. To understand the influence of these parameters, the results of past experimental studies were carefully examined, and parametric finite-element analyses were performed. The analytical equations available in the literature were used for the flexural capacity estimation of masonry reinforced with SWRCM; however, the majority of them could not provide accurate and reliable predictions. This may be due to neglecting the contribution of the cementitious matrix and debonding at the interface of the masonry substrate and composite overlay. Thus, a new equation has been proposed in this study for estimating the flexural capacity of masonry strengthened with SWRCM, which can consider the contribution of the inorganic matrix and the debonding at various interfaces through an effective tensile strain parameter. In addition, a stepwise procedure has been provided to estimate the effective tensile strain of SWRCM composite. Results of the analytical investigation showed that the proposed method can effectively provide a reliable and consistent prediction of the flexural capacity of masonry strengthened with SWRCM composites.
Practical Applications
This study provides information about the role of various parameters in influencing the flexural capacity of masonry strengthened with steel-wire–reinforced cementitious matrix (SWRCM). To estimate the flexural strength of masonry reinforced with SWRCM, there is a lack of analytical methodology in the existing literature. Therefore, this study evaluated the suitability or reliability of existing equations, originally developed for fabric-reinforced composite, in predicting the flexural capacity of SWRCM-strengthened masonry. Further, this study proposed an equation to predict the flexural capacity of SWRCM-strengthened masonry. To address the contribution of cementitious matrix and debonding failure, an effective strain parameter was introduced in the proposed equation, and to determine its value, a step-wise test methodology was described in this study. In addition, an empirical equation was proposed to calculate the value of effective strain. This equation may be helpful when it is not possible to perform the material characterization tests for SWRCM. The developed equation along with the effective strain parameter provided a reliable prediction of flexural capacity for masonry specimens strengthened with different types of SWRCMs. The proposed analytical method may help engineers in designing the SWRCM strengthening for vulnerable masonry structures.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the grant received from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Government of India (Grant No. 23(0035)/19/EMR-II). The authors also sincerely appreciate the support received by the staff of the Structural Engineering Laboratory at the Indian Institute of Technology Patna, Bihar, India.
Notation
The following symbols are used in this paper:
- As
- area of reinforcing material per unit width;
- b
- width of wallette;
- c
- lever arm;
- Ect
- initial modulus of WRCM coupon;
- Emc
- modulus of masonry;
- Es
- Young’s modulus of single wire;
- Etg
- Young’s modulus of wire mesh group;
- Fct
- average tensile force;
- fb
- brick compressive strength;
- fcm
- compressive strength of cementitious matrix;
- fct
- tensile strength of coupon;
- fj
- compressive strength of joint mortar;
- fmc
- masonry compressive strength;
- fsu
- ultimate tensile strength of single wire;
- fu
- peak flexural strength;
- Lw
- length of wallette;
- M
- flexural moment capacity;
- MCal
- predicted moment;
- MExp
- experimental moment capacity;
- Mu
- flexural moment capacity;
- n
- number of wire mesh layer;
- S
- mesh spacing;
- Tk
- welded wire mesh with thicker diameter;
- Tn
- welded wire mesh with thinner diameter;
- to
- thickness of cementitious matrix;
- tw
- thickness of the wallette;
- ɛct
- coupon strain;
- ɛmu
- ultimate strain in masonry;
- ɛse
- effective tensile strain in WRCM composite;
- ɛtg
- strain at yield strength of mesh group;
- ɛy
- strain at yield strength of wire;
- ρ
- reinforcement ratio (amount of reinforcement perpendicular to the bending axis of the specimen);
- ρm
- density of masonry;
- ρo
- density of overlay;
- σbt
- ultimate normal stress;
- σug
- ultimate tensile strength of mesh group;
- σy
- yield strength of single wire;
- σyg
- yield strength of wire mesh group; and
- ϕ
- wire mesh diameter.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Composites for Construction
Volume 27 • Issue 2 • April 2023
Copyright
© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 20, 2022
Accepted: Nov 30, 2022
Published online: Jan 24, 2023
Published in print: Apr 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Jun 24, 2023
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Cement
- Compressive strength
- Concrete
- Construction (by type)
- Construction engineering
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Finite element method
- Flexural strength
- Masonry
- Material mechanics
- Material properties
- Materials engineering
- Mathematical functions
- Mathematics
- Matrix (mathematics)
- Metals (material)
- Methodology (by type)
- Numerical methods
- Steel
- Strength of materials
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