Abstract

The seismic collapse of a low-rise unreinforced masonry (URM) building is initiated by the out-of-plane failure of walls at roof level. The theoretical basis of this engineering problem is presented. The available strength and ductility of a URM wall is presented, which was tested under reversed loads to simulate seismic effects. It was seen that both ductility and strength need to be improved. Another geometrically similar URM test wall which is retrofitted by FRP was constructed. Test results showed significant increases in both strength and ductility. The final failure came by the tensile rupture of the FRP strip.

Keywords: Earthquake, masonry, seismic, out-of-plane, FRP.