Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
3.4
3.1
Journals
Buildings
Special Issues
Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures
share announcement

Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Structures".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 7081

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Andrea Chiozzi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara, C.so Ercole I d’Este 32, I-44121 Ferrara, Italy
Interests: computational mechanics; finite element methods; virtual element methods; masonry; masonry structures; limit analysis; structural fragility; earthquake engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Unreinforced masonry constitutes one of the most common structural typologies in Western and Eastern architecture, and it largely prevails in many of the historical buildings worldwide, including monumental constructions and other buildings of relevant artistic significance in regard to world cultural heritage. Masonry is also significantly widespread among ancient infrastructures such as historical bridges and tunnels. Due to aging, changing loading demands, weathering, vibrations due to earthquakes and anthropogenic events, and many other factors, masonry structures often show significant signs of deterioration and distress, and the long-term performance of such assets is affected by high uncertainty. Structural failures in masonry-built environments would lead to uncountable direct and indirect economical and social losses, and an inestimable value is therefore at stake. Hence, there currently is an urgent need to better understand both the in-service and ultimate structural behavior of masonry structures under the action of both static and dynamic loading. To this aim, the effective and reliable structural assessment of new and historical masonry structures requires, on the one hand, in-depth knowledge of their current state by properly surveying actual geometries, restraint and loading conditions, and pre-existing damage, as well as the testing and of materials’ mechanical properties. On the other hand, the development of novel advanced mechanical models and accurate and efficient numerical techniques is strongly needed in order to predict the structural behavior of complex masonry structures under both service and exceptional loadings, such as earthquakes. Such models should precisely account for the strongly nonlinear compression-only mechanical behavior of masonry and different sources of uncertainty that can affect material mechanical properties and composition.

This Special Issue welcomes contributions that advance the state of the art of the aforementioned topics, including, but not limited to, the following topics:

  • Analytical and computational strategies for the assessment of the most common masonry structural systems such as walls, arches, vaults, and bridges.
  • Numerical approaches for the analysis of masonry buildings undergoing earthquakes and other dynamical loadings.
  • Standard and non-standard limit analysis of masonry structures.
  • Rigid block models for masonry structures.
  • Analytical and computational strategies for the repair and retrofitting of masonry structures.
  • Soil–structure interaction for masonry structures.
  • Dynamic or static, as well as in situ or laboratory, testing of masonry structures.
  • Full-scale tests on structures.
  • Fragility assessment of masonry structures.
  • Vulnerability assessments of the masonry-built environment at the regional scale.

Dr. Andrea Chiozzi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • masonry
  • masonry structures
  • mechanical models
  • numerical methods
  • dynamical simulations
  • limit analysis
  • in situ testing
  • laboratory testing
  • fragility assessment
  • historical heritage

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

28 pages, 6093 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Methodologies for the Behavior Factor Estimation in Seismic Design of Buildings: Case Study of Geo-Sourced Masonry Construction
by Noura Zarzour, Maria Paola Santisi d’Avila, Andrea Penna, Luca Lenti and Michel Oggero
Buildings 2025, 15(7), 1036; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15071036 - 24 Mar 2025
Viewed by 315
Abstract
The behavior factor, which represents the force reduction that a structure would experience if its response was completely elastic compared with the seismic forces used for design, is defined in seismic design codes for common construction techniques and materials. A specific assessment is [...] Read more.
The behavior factor, which represents the force reduction that a structure would experience if its response was completely elastic compared with the seismic forces used for design, is defined in seismic design codes for common construction techniques and materials. A specific assessment is needed when novel construction materials are adopted. The lack of accurate structural performance estimations limits the use of green construction materials because building codes only allow the use of minimum values for the behavior factor. This research aims to verify the reliability of the proposed capacity-demand-based (CDB) method for the estimation of the force reduction factor and behavior factor, by comparison with other procedures such as demand-based, capacity-based and formula-based approaches. The main characteristic of the proposed approach is that the ductility-FRF curve is obtained numerically for the building natural period, instead of imposing an analytical FRF-ductility-period relationship. The advantage of the CDB-method is its efficiency from a computational point of view without restrictions concerning the construction material and structural typology. The results are compared in the case where dynamic analyses are performed for a three-dimensional (3D) building model (considered as a reference) and for an equivalent single-degree-of-freedom system which reduces the computation time. The CDB-method yields safe results compared with the N2 method, and it is consistent with a capacity-based approach applied to the 3D building model. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 7637 KiB  
Article
Elastic Body Spring Method (EBSM) for the Stability Analysis of the Global Vipassana Pagoda in Mumbai, India
by Alessandro Gandolfi, Natalia Pingaro and Gabriele Milani
Buildings 2025, 15(5), 653; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15050653 - 20 Feb 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 449
Abstract
This paper presents an innovative procedure for the stability assessment of masonry domes, aiming at simplifying the modelling and the computational stages of structural analysis. It exploits a macroscopic approach to discretise masonry, specifically using elastic bodies linked by nonlinear interfaces. The latter [...] Read more.
This paper presents an innovative procedure for the stability assessment of masonry domes, aiming at simplifying the modelling and the computational stages of structural analysis. It exploits a macroscopic approach to discretise masonry, specifically using elastic bodies linked by nonlinear interfaces. The latter are made by axial and, when needed, tangential trusses—in turn characterised by an elastic perfectly plastic/brittle behaviour—which constitute the joints connecting homogenised elastic macroblocks. The objective is—by employing low-cost commercial Finite Element software—to predict the behaviour of a masonry curved structure up to failure, maintaining the computational complexity low and the approach accessible to a common user. The process enables not only the quantification of damage at failure but also the tracking of its evolution within the structure, by examining axial forces found in the trusses at each load step. The method allows the modelling of the response of any kind of masonry structure under imposed loads or displacements. Its efficacy is proven on a paradigmatic dome (Global Vipassana Pagoda, Mumbai, India) by comparing the results with limit analysis precedent studies. Finally, the major reliability of a 3D approach is demonstrated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 7840 KiB  
Article
Simple Nonlinear Numerical Modeling for Unreinforced and FRP-Reinforced Masonry Domes
by Alessandro Gandolfi, Natalia Pingaro and Gabriele Milani
Buildings 2024, 14(1), 166; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14010166 - 9 Jan 2024
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 1702
Abstract
This paper presents a new method to model the nonlinear behavior of double-curvature masonry structures, possibly reinforced by composite materials, by means of conventional elasto-plastic analyses. The method is meant to be used in professional design, especially for assessment and retrofitting purposes, based [...] Read more.
This paper presents a new method to model the nonlinear behavior of double-curvature masonry structures, possibly reinforced by composite materials, by means of conventional elasto-plastic analyses. The method is meant to be used in professional design, especially for assessment and retrofitting purposes, based on the exploitation of the simplest nonlinear finite elements available in commercial software, namely, trusses with elasto-fragile and elasto-ductile behavior (Cutoff Bars, according for instance to the definition provided by Strand7 R3.1.3a). Numerical static nonlinear analyses are carried out by considering elastic hexahedral elements for bricks and by lumping nonlinearities on joints. These are assumed, in turn, to be elastic–brittle and elastic–plastic by using 1D elements, namely, Point Contacts, under the No-Tension Material hypothesis, and Cutoff Bars, respectively, assigning a small tensile resistance to the material. The reinforcement, realized with FRP hooping strips, is successfully modeled in a similar fashion, i.e., by applying perfectly bonded elastic–plastic Cutoff Bars at the extrados of the dome, where debonding is accounted for in a conventional way, limiting the tensile strength according to Italian Standards’ indications. The procedure is validated against benchmark models with the same geometry, using experimental data and more refined structural model results for comparison. After an in-depth analysis of the obtained results, in terms of capacity curves, the robustness and accuracy of the proposed approach are assessed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 1980 KiB  
Article
Stress Evaluation in Axially Loaded Members of Masonry Buildings and Space Structures: From Traditional Methods to Combinations with Artificial Intelligence Approaches
by Marco Bonopera
Buildings 2023, 13(8), 2097; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13082097 - 18 Aug 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1805
Abstract
Stress state evaluation in axially loaded structural members is significant for sustaining and preserving the service life of buildings. While successful monitoring furnishes staunch information on the health, integrity, safety and serviceability of structures, maintaining the structural performance of a building with time [...] Read more.
Stress state evaluation in axially loaded structural members is significant for sustaining and preserving the service life of buildings. While successful monitoring furnishes staunch information on the health, integrity, safety and serviceability of structures, maintaining the structural performance of a building with time significantly depends on assessing the occurrence. Variations in the stress in axially loaded members may occur in masonry buildings or space structures caused by different conditions and human-induced factors. In the last decades, numerous nondestructive methods have been generated to furnish practical means for identifying axial load in the tie-rods of masonry buildings and in the structural members of space structures. Significant effort has been put into dynamic-based approaches, which make use of the vibrational response of the monitored member to investigate its condition and evaluate the axial load. In particular, wide laboratory and field tests have been executed worldwide, resulting in several findings. Meanwhile, with flourishing sensing technology and computing power, Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications, such as hybrid methods, optimization techniques and deep learning algorithms, have become more practicable and widely used in vibration-based axial stress prediction, with efficiency and, frequently, with strict precision. While there have been various manuscripts published on dynamic-based axial stress evaluation, there are no works in which the passage from traditional methods to combinations with AI approaches have been illustrated. This article aims to address this gap by introducing the highlights of the traditional methods, and furnish a review of the applications of AI techniques used for nondestructive-based axial stress prediction in tie-rods and structural members. Conclusions, including further studies and field developments, have also been mentioned at the end of the article. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

32 pages, 19918 KiB  
Article
Structural Analysis of Masonry Square Vaults in the Italian Region of Apulia
by Maristella De Fabrizio and Vincenzo Mallardo
Buildings 2023, 13(8), 1997; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13081997 - 5 Aug 2023
Viewed by 1890
Abstract
This research concerns the introduction and the structural analysis of masonry vaults in Puglia, a region in the south part of Italy, built between the sixteenth and the seventeen centuries. Such vaults have special shapes that make them unique in the overview of [...] Read more.
This research concerns the introduction and the structural analysis of masonry vaults in Puglia, a region in the south part of Italy, built between the sixteenth and the seventeen centuries. Such vaults have special shapes that make them unique in the overview of the masonry vaults spread all over the world. The present paper intends to shed light on the mechanical behavior of two typical vaults in Puglia, the “volta a spigoli” (edge vault) and the “volta a squadro” (square vault). There are many contributions that explore the mechanical behavior of the classical vaults, but to the authors’ knowledge, this is the first attempt investigating the “volta a squadro”. The paper describes the adopted research methods. First, a building survey is carried out with the integration of previous geometry acquisitions performed by local stakeholders. Then, the analysis is pursued by a non-linear approach that suitably inserts cracks where stress concentrations occur. Two meaningful load conditions are taken into account and numerically investigated. Under vertical loads, numerical results have inferred the surveyed cracks and concluded that the safety factor is much higher than one. On the other hand, under the maximum seismic load, the safety factor is estimated to be about 30%. This work is the very first investigation on the structural performance of a “volta a squadro”. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Scientific Developments on the Mechanics of Masonry Structures)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-5
Back to TopTop