Experimental and analytical analysis of the load-bearing capacity Pu of improved dry-stacked masonry

Dry-Stacked Masonry (DSM) as structural load-bearing element is still unexploited because of many factors including the early face-shell cracking, the impacts of the block imperfections on the wall load-bearing capacity (Pu) and the lack of design code safely predicting Pu. Through experimental tests, this paper investigates a strategy for improving Pu of DSM by placing an additional horizontal contact layer on the top face of raw DSM blocks. The effect of four mixtures used to improve the raw DSM blocks has been investigated. Further, a mathematical model predicting Pu is proposed which takes into account the effects of the block imperfections. In the course of the investigation, 20 DSM wallets and 25 DSM prisms built with raw and improved DSM blocks were tested to failure under axial compression. In the former, the face-shell cracking load (Pcrack) and the load-bearing capacity (Pu) were recorded, while in the latter, the actual contact area was recorded in hundred full bed-joints using Prescale Fujifilm strips. The results showed that a contact layer of well-defined properties increased the actual contact area from 23% to 55% and improved Pu by 31,9%. The mathematical model for the raw DSM blocks predicts Pu with a mean accuracy of 93% and a standard deviation of 12% where the standards EN 1996-1-1 for mortared masonry exhibited a mean accuracy of 137% and a standard deviation of about 29%. Concerning the improved DSM blocks, the proposed model predicts Pu with a mean accuracy of 106% and a standard deviation of 10%, whereas the standards EN 1996-1-1 presents a mean accuracy of 124% and a standard deviation of 9%.