Experimental and Numerical Assessment of the In-Plane Behaviour of PG-RM Walls with Openings

Abstract

This paper investigates how openings affect the in-plane response of partially grouted masonry (PG-RM) walls. The effect of the openings was assessed regarding shear capacity and failure mode through the cyclic test of four façadetype walls constructed with different opening sizes and with and without asymmetry. The results show that the shear capacity decreases with the opening’s height or width increment. It is also observed that geometric asymmetry generates differences between the lateral resistances of both in-plane loading directions. In addition, a two-dimensional finite element macro model using Abaqus was validated against the experimental results. The numerical strategy implemented satisfactorily represented the shear strength and failure mode of the tested walls. Considering the high complexity of representing the PG-RM behaviour, the proposed model is suitable for reproducing the PG-RM walls’ shear resistance and could be subsequently used further to investigate the effect of openings with different configurations.