Discrete Element Modelling of Single-Nave Churches Damaged after the 2009 Earthquake in l’Aquila, Italy

Abstract

The survey of damages after recent earthquakes have shown the fragility of masonry churches against the out-of-plane overturning of the façade. This failure mechanism is currently analyzed having recourse to a rigid body model, using either limit analysis with kinematic approach, or dynamic analysis under rocking motion. However, both the aforementioned methods neglect the interaction with the lateral walls, leading to an underestimation of the effective structural capacity under seismic action. The main goal of this work is therefore to investigate the effect of the interlocking between the façade and the transversal wall and the influence of the quality of masonry in out-of-plane overturning. For this purpose, a refined model of masonry through a Discrete Element Method is developed, based on a detailed recognition of masonry units. The acceleration and displacement capacity are estimated through quasi-static pushover and pulse-based dynamic analyses and compared to those calculated for the rigid body model. The proposed methodology is then applied to a sample of three single-nave masonry churches that suffered damages during the 2009 L’Aquila, Italy earthquake.

Full document

References

[1] Lagomarsino, S. and Podestà S., Seismic Vulnerability of Ancient Churches: II. Statistical Analysis of surveyed data and methods for risk analysis. Earthquake Spectra (2004), vol. 20, n. 2, pp. 395-412.

[2] Sorrentino, L., D’Ayala, D., de Felice, G., Griffith, M.C., Lagomarsino, S., Magenes, G. Review of Out-of-Plane Seismic Assessment Techniques Applied To Existing Masonry Buildings. International Journal of Architectural Heritage (2017), vol. 11, pp. 2-21.

[3] Heyman, J. The stone skeleton. International journal of solids and structures (1966), vol. 2, n. 2, pp. 249-79.

[4] Housner, G. W. The behavior of inverted pendulum structures during earthquakes. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (1963), vol. 53, n. 2, pp. 403-417.

[5] ITASCA consulting group, UDEC (Universal Distinct Element Code) Version 6.0 (2017), Minneapolis, Minnesota.

[6] Azevedo, J., Sincraian, G., Lemos J.V. Seismic behavior of blocky masonry structures. Earthquake Spectra (2000), vol. 16, n. 2, pp. 337-365.

[7] Lemos, J.V. Discrete Element Modeling of Masonry Structures. International Journal of Architectural Heritage (2007), vol. 1, n. 2, pp. 190-213.

[8] de Felice, G. and Mauro, A. On Overturning of the Façade in Churches with Single Nave: Some Case Studies from L’Aquila, Italy, 2009 Earthquake. Advanced Materials Research (2010), vol. 133-134, pp. 807-812.

[9] Gobbin, F., Fugger, R. and de Felice, G. Modellazione agli elementi distinti per lo studio dell'interazione della facciata con la parete laterale di alcune chiese nel territorio Aquilano. In: ANIDIS (2019).

[10] de Felice, G. Out-of-plane seismic capacity of masonry depending on wall section morphology. International Journal of Architectural Heritage (2011), vol. 5, n. 4-5, pp. 466-482.

[11] Al Shawa, O., de Felice, G., Mauro A., and Sorrentino L. Out-of-plane seismic behaviour of rocking masonry walls. Journal of earthquake engineering (2012), vol. 41, n. 5, pp. 949-968.

[12] de Felice, G., De Santis, S., Lourenço, P.B., Mendes, N. Methods and Challenges for the Seismic Assessment of Historic Masonry Structures. International Journal of Architectural Heritage (2017), vol. 11, pp. 143-160.

[13] Malomo, D., De Jong, M.J. and Penna, A. Distinct Element modelling of the in-plane cyclic response of URM walls subjected to shear-compression. Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics (2019), vol. 48, n. 12, pp 1322-1344.

[14] Meriggi, P., de Felice, G., De Santis, S., Gobbin, F., Mordanova, A. and Pantò, B. Distinct Element Modelling of masonry walls under out-of-plane seismic loading. International journal of architectural heritage (2019), vol. 13, n. 7, pp. 1110-1123.

[15] Lemos, J.V. Discrete Element Modeling of the Seismic Behaviour of Masonry Constructions. Buildings (2019), vol. 9, n. 2, pp. 43-53.

[16] Malena, M., Portioli, F., Gagliardo, R., Tomaselli, G., Cascini, L. and de Felice, G. Collapse mechanism analysis of historic masonry structures subjected to lateral loads: A comparison between continuous and discrete models. Computers & Structures (2019), vol. 220, pp. 14-31.

[17] Mauro, A., de Felice, G. and De Jong, M. J. The relative dynamic resilience of masonry collapse mechanism. Engineering Structures (2015), vol. 85, pp. 182-194.

[18] Mordanova, A., de Felice, G. Seismic assessment of archaeological heritage using discrete element method. International Journal of Architectural Heritage (2018), DOI: 10.1080/15583058.2018.1543482

[19] Makris, N. and Roussos, Y. Rocking response of rigid blocks under near-source ground motions. Géotechnique (2009), vol. 50, n. 3, pp. 243-262.

[20] Cundall, P. A. A computer Model for Simulating Progressive Large-Scale Movements in Blocky Rock Systems. Proceeding of the Symposium of the International Society of Rock Mechanics (1971).