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Assessment, Repair, Maintenance, and Conservation of Existing Buildings: State-of-the-art Methods,...
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Assessment, Repair, Maintenance, and Conservation of Existing Buildings: State-of-the-art Methods, Advances, and Case Studies

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Materials, and Repair & Renovation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 December 2025 | Viewed by 4299

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Cristina Cantagallo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Geology, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 65127 Pescara, Italy
Interests: building engineering; vulnerability assessment; reinforced concrete buildings; unreinforced masonry buildings; heritage buildings; earthquake engineering
Prof. Dr. Valentino Sangiorgio

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Geology, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 65127 Pescara, Italy
Interests: vulnerability assessment; building construction technologies; building production; building heritage; user reporting augmented reality; multicriteria optimization; multicriteria analysis; risk analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Humberto Varum

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, Porto, 4099-002 Portugal
Interests: seismic engineering; structural analysis; seismic design; RC structures
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The assessment, repair, maintenance, and conservation of existing buildings represent critical aspects in the field of architecture, engineering, and urban planning. As the global population continues to grow, the demand for sustainable and efficient use of existing building stock becomes increasingly significant. This multifaceted issue necessitates comprehensive solutions that encompass state-of-the-art methods, advances in technology, and illuminating case studies. The delicate balance between preserving historical value and adapting structures to meet repair, maintenance, and conservation needs requires different and personalized approaches in the function of the building construction technology. This Special Issue aims to explore the current landscape of assessment, repair, maintenance, and conservation methodologies, shedding light on innovative techniques, technological advancements, and case studies that contribute to the evolution of sustainable and resilient built environments.

Dr. Cristina Cantagallo
Prof. Dr. Valentino Sangiorgio
Prof. Dr. Humberto Varum
Guest Editors

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

  • existing masonry buildings
  • existing reinforced concrete buildings
  • earthquake engineering
  • natural fiber materials
  • composite materials
  • advanced materials
  • combined hazards
  • multi-risk assessment
  • building heritage
  • simplified vulnerability methods
  • building risk
  • territorial risk
  • resilience of existing buildings
  • maintenance strategies for existing buildings
  • building information modelling (BIM)

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

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 9337 KiB  
Article
Numerical Analysis on Sliding-Type Transverse Splicing Connection Applied in Widening Continuous Concrete Box-Girder Bridge
by Wenqing Wu, Chong Cao, Yuqin Wu, Jiyang Liu, Dan Liu, Liang Chen and Zheng Liu
Buildings 2025, 15(1), 35; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15010035 - 26 Dec 2024
Viewed by 682
Abstract
When traditional joint structures are used to widen multi-span continuous concrete box girder bridges, excessive lateral deformation often occurs at the girder ends, typically leading to the squeezing and cracking of seismic blocks by the girder webs. To address these technical challenges, this [...] Read more.
When traditional joint structures are used to widen multi-span continuous concrete box girder bridges, excessive lateral deformation often occurs at the girder ends, typically leading to the squeezing and cracking of seismic blocks by the girder webs. To address these technical challenges, this paper investigates a new type of slide-rail lateral joint structure that can create a longitudinal sliding effect between two bridge decks of the old and new bridge box girders, thereby effectively reducing the lateral deformation at the girder ends. First, this paper employs the finite element method to conduct a numerical analysis of a real-world bridge widening project, exploring the working mechanism and application feasibility of this novel connection method. The results show that, in the case study, if the traditional joint method is used, the lateral displacement at the girder ends can reach up to 40 mm after three years of widening. However, when the slide-rail joint structure is employed, the lateral displacement at the girder ends is limited to no more than 6 mm. This demonstrates that the new joint method can indeed effectively address the issue of excessive lateral deformation at the ends of the widened structure. Second, given that the slide-rail lateral joint structure is a relatively precise engineering structure, this paper examines the lateral load transfer mechanism under loads such as wheel loads and foundation settlement differences. It discusses the load-bearing characteristics of various components, including square steel pipes, lateral connection rebars, concrete flange plates, and embedded rebars. Finally, through a parameter sensitivity analysis, it is found that the torsional stiffness of the square steel pipes is a critical parameter for ensuring the load-bearing capacity of the structure. Therefore, it is recommended to set the wall thickness of the square steel pipes to 5 mm. Based on these research findings, this paper theoretically demonstrates that the new slide-rail lateral joint structure can effectively solve the technical challenges encountered during the lateral joint widening of multi-span long-span concrete continuous box girder bridges, providing a new solution for this field. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment, Repair, Maintenance, and Conservation of Existing Buildings: State-of-the-art Methods, Advances, and Case Studies)
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15 pages, 4814 KiB  
Article
Reliability-Based Seismic Safety Assessment of the Metropolitan Cathedral of Brasília
by Philipe Q. Rodrigues, João C. Pantoja and Humberto Varum
Buildings 2024, 14(7), 1916; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14071916 - 23 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1129
Abstract
Recent destructive earthquakes in Turkey (2023) with devastating effects have reawakened the discussion about seismic activity in Brazil and the vulnerability of the Brazilian buildings. Despite the lower magnitudes, national records should not be disregarded, as earthquakes with a magnitude below five may [...] Read more.
Recent destructive earthquakes in Turkey (2023) with devastating effects have reawakened the discussion about seismic activity in Brazil and the vulnerability of the Brazilian buildings. Despite the lower magnitudes, national records should not be disregarded, as earthquakes with a magnitude below five may still cause loss of life and property damage. The assessment of existing RC buildings allows us to understand the performance of a structure during an earthquake and the adoption of mitigating measures. This paper preliminarily investigates the seismic vulnerability of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Brasilia, which was recognized as a World Heritage Site by ONU in 1987. The Rapid Visual Screening (RVS) procedure has been adopted for qualitative vulnerability assessment through the guidelines of the Japan Building Disaster Prevention Association at the procedure updated in accordance with the Brazilian reality. This research examined the structure under horizontal acceleration defined by national seismic code, and various scenarios are assumed as time aging, structural irregularities, and the level of importance of the structure. In this study, the Monte Carlo simulation is carried out to evaluate the level of safety. A performed analysis has shown that the examined building possesses the seismic capacity required against the expected earthquake motions. Even with reliability analysis, the structure achieves an acceptable level of safety. The results highlight the importance of a probabilistic approach to make reliable decisions on the conservation and rehabilitation of architectural heritage buildings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment, Repair, Maintenance, and Conservation of Existing Buildings: State-of-the-art Methods, Advances, and Case Studies)
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Review

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29 pages, 4281 KiB  
Review
Universal Accessibility to Cultural Heritage in Spain: A Bibliometric Review
by Antonio del Bosque, Pablo Fernández-Arias, Patricia Castro-López, María Nieto-Sobrino and Diego Vergara
Buildings 2025, 15(9), 1563; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15091563 - 6 May 2025
Viewed by 339
Abstract
Universal accessibility in cultural heritage is a key challenge to ensure the inclusion of all visitors in historical and tourist environments. The aim of this research is to analyze the current state of research on universal accessibility to cultural heritage in Spain, identifying [...] Read more.
Universal accessibility in cultural heritage is a key challenge to ensure the inclusion of all visitors in historical and tourist environments. The aim of this research is to analyze the current state of research on universal accessibility to cultural heritage in Spain, identifying the key institutions, themes, and trends within this field. Additionally, it seeks to assess how these findings relate to national priorities and highlight gaps in the implementation of accessibility measures. This study employed the PRISMA 2020 framework to select and analyze 1035 scientific articles published between 2010 and 2025, retrieved from the Scopus and Web of Science databases. Bibliometrix (an R package) and Biblioshiny were used to analyze the data. The results show an exponential growth in publications since 2018, highlighting key areas such as accessible tourism, digitalization, the use of technologies for heritage documentation, urban planning, and geo-heritage conservation. It is concluded that accessibility in cultural heritage is an expanding interdisciplinary field with increasing international significance. It is recommended to continue exploring innovative technological solutions, strengthen governance strategies, and expand studies to rural and natural environments to ensure truly universal accessibility. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment, Repair, Maintenance, and Conservation of Existing Buildings: State-of-the-art Methods, Advances, and Case Studies)
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27 pages, 1622 KiB  
Review
Historical Evolution of the Impact of Seismic Incident Angles on the Safety Assessment of Various Building Construction Typologies
by Cristina Cantagallo, Marco Terrenzi, Guido Camata and Enrico Spacone
Buildings 2024, 14(6), 1490; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14061490 - 21 May 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1213
Abstract
In the existing building stock, typically characterised by a high degree of irregularity, the effects of earthquakes are strongly dependent on the epicentre–structure direction and the angle of incidence of the seismic motion. However, the scientific community has not yet reached a unanimous [...] Read more.
In the existing building stock, typically characterised by a high degree of irregularity, the effects of earthquakes are strongly dependent on the epicentre–structure direction and the angle of incidence of the seismic motion. However, the scientific community has not yet reached a unanimous consensus on the evaluation of the effects of seismic incidence angles. Therefore, this paper conducts an extensive investigation of the international literature on current methods to consider seismic directionality, systematically reviewing more than 80 publications on this topic. Following a brief overview of the problem and an analysis of the initial developments of the multidirectionality concept of seismic input, a state-of-the-art review is presented based on the considered analysis methods, specifically response spectrum analysis, nonlinear static analysis, and nonlinear response history analysis. Moreover, the adoption of multidirectional seismic input in popular codes and standards is presented and discussed. This study provides the first comprehensive synthesis of research on the seismic incidence angles across diverse building typologies, offering crucial insights for future code revisions and highlighting significant gaps in current analytical methods and standards, thereby setting a new direction for subsequent empirical investigations. Specifically, the extensive state-of-the-art review revealed that, until now, the evaluation of the angle of incidence was primarily conducted on existing reinforced concrete buildings with a limited number of storeys, analysed with nonlinear response history analysis. This underscores the need for future research to extensively investigate the impact of the angle of incidence on other types of construction typologies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment, Repair, Maintenance, and Conservation of Existing Buildings: State-of-the-art Methods, Advances, and Case Studies)
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