Damage assessment and identification of defects in reinforced masonry walls

In the framework of the DISWall research project, funded by the European Commission, quality assessment procedures for modern reinforced masonry buildings, based on the use of non-destructive test methods, are under development. Different testing techniques were applied on two reinforced masonry systems, based on the use of perforated clay units, typically designed for construction in areas characterized by low to high seismic hazard. In this contribution, the results of radar tests, applied in laboratory on two masonry specimens built by including known defects into the masonry, are reported. The main aim of the testing campaign was that of evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed non-destructive technique for localizing the position of vertical and horizontal reinforcement, evaluating the presence of the rebars overlapping, identifying the non-proper filling of vertical and horizontal joints and the absence of proper cover for the reinforcement. Subsequently, real scale reinforced masonry walls were tested on-site. Radar tests were again applied. Furthermore, dynamic tests were carried out on 6 m high walls, tested under cyclic out-of-plane loading, at different stages of the tests, in order to evaluate the influence of the damage on the structural response of the system. In the present contribution, the first results of the experimental tests are presented and discussed.