In this study, three masonry shear wall prototypes with different opening configurations and a single room (URM) building constituted by the assemblage of the aforementioned walls are studied. Numerical results are compared with the experimental results carried out to validate the advanced numerical modelling. Two different Finite Element models are adopted for the numerical simulations; the first assumes that masonry behaves as a simple homogenous isotropic material exhibiting separate damage in tension and compression, the second relies on discretization of the individual walls and the whole building by means of elastic 8 noded elements and homogenized interfaces. Even though the first method provides acceptable predictions of the lateral load carrying capacity, damage criteria obtained are often not too close to those experimentally observed. Conversely, the second model exhibits the sufficient level of complexity that allows not only to accurately predict the global behavior, but also provides crack patterns very close to those experimentally obtained, so being considered a reliable tool for analysis of URM buildings and further to devise strengthening schemes to reduce their seismic vulnerability.

Unreinforced masonry

Non-linear pushover analysis

Masonry building

Macro-model

Homogenization approach