Experimental investigation on the seismic behavior of adobe walls retrofitted with palm meshes

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 graduate student/yazd university

2 Yazd University / member of Scientific Board

3 assistant professor /yazd university

Abstract

Use of adobe materials is considered as a common construction practice in rural and historic cities of developing countries including Iran. Compared to other conventional building materials, adobe offers some advantages such as eco-friendly features, local availability, easy application, cost[1]efficiency, and high thermal and sound insulation. However, the weak seismic performance of adobe buildings under past earthquakes has led to extensive economic losses and casualties. Therefore, retrofitting of such buildings and development of guidelines for their seismic design seem vital if they are intended to resist strong ground motions. In addition, retrofitting of adobe buildings with natural and traditional materials would be more desirable. Due to the critical role of walls as the main load bearing element in adobe buildings, their retrofitting would be of high priority. Towards this, the current study was aimed at utilizing palm fibers as a natural and sustainable material in lateral retrofitting of adobe walls. In total, six adobe wall panels, with dimensions of 1000×900×200 mm, including one control and five retrofitted specimens were tested under the combination of a constant vertical load and incremental lateral displacement reversals. The retrofitting technique involved external application of palm meshes plastered with a straw-mud mortar. The experimental parameters comprise dimensions of meshes, number of anchors on both sides of the walls, and arrangement of meshes. The results indicated that using externally bonded fiber meshes can lead to retaining the overall integrity and change the shear failure mode to a rocking/toe crushing. Further, the lateral strength, ductility factor, and energy dissipation capacity of walls were improved remarkably.

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References

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Amirkabir Journal of Civil Engineering
Volume 52, Issue 8
November 2020
Pages 2129-2142

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