Seismic Retrofitting of Masonry Walls with Different Arrangement of Brick by Using a Mortar Joint Technique

Since unreinforced structures have the highest potential for earthquake damage and have multiple failure mechanisms, due to the lack of many uncertainties in the parameters of this type of structures, their vulnerability should be studied with proper knowledge of this and considering the parameters and the most probable modes for its failure. Also, most of the structures that are of historical importance are made of building materials and bricks. These types of structures usually have major weaknesses against earthquakes. Recognition of these weaknesses is a prelude to choosing the appropriate method to strengthen them. In recent decades, researchers have used various methods to enhance the seismic behavior of brick walls. Common methods for this work are coating and reinforcement with plaster and sprayed concrete, which is the most common method of using sprayed concrete. In this study, the micro method is used for finite element modeling in ABAQUS software. In modeling, three methods of reinforcement are used, which include reinforcement with steel sheet, FRP sheet and mortar. The results of this study showed that the sequential arrangement of FRP strips, compared to other methods, had a greater effect on improving the flexibility and the diagonal arrangement of the mentioned strips had a tangible effect on increasing the final strength of masonry walls.