NEESR: Enhancement of Seismic Performance and Design of Partially Grouted Reinforced Masonry Buildings

Project Overview

The proposed research will result in economically competitive design details and retrofit methods to enhance the seismic performance and safety of partially-grouted reinforced masonry wall systems. Almost all reinforced masonry construction in the mid-western and eastern parts of the US are partially grouted, and recent research has shown that analytical tools and current design provisions for these systems are inadequate. This research will use large-scale structural testing facilities at three NEES sites and refined computational tools developed in a previous NEESR project to enhance our understanding of the mechanics and inelastic behavior of these structures at the component as well as system levels. The proposed research will also result in simplified analytical tools that can be used in practice for the design and seismic performance assessment of these structures. The research will further advance model-based simulation capabilities for this type of highly heterogeneous system and lead to efficient earthquake resilient construction for regions that have low-probability but high-consequence seismic events.