Confinement of masonry columns with textile-reinforced mortar jackets

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental investigation on the confinement of masonry columns with textile-reinforced mortar (TRM) jackets as a means of enhancing their axial load-carrying capacity and axial deformability. The experimental program included the construction and testing of twenty-six masonry prisms, which were subjected to monotonic concentric compression. The specimens were equally divided in two testing Series based on their cross-section geometry; square and rectangular with 2:1 aspect ratio. One specimen from each Series was tested unconfined and served as reference specimen, whereas the rest twelve specimens were tested after receiving TRM jacketing. Apart from the cross-section geometry, the investigated parameters included the textile material (two types of carbon-fibre textiles, one glass and one basalt-fibre textile), and the amount of the textile reinforcement (no. of layers). Overall, TRM confinement of masonry columns increased both their compressive strength and ultimate axial strain, with effectiveness factors varying between 1.02 and 1.61 for the strength and from 1.05 to 4.11 for the strain. The effect of the investigated parameters is carefully examined and discussed in the paper, in terms of both the compressive strength and the ultimate axial strain enhancement. Modelling of masonry confined with TRM jackets is presented by adopting a widely accepted confinement model, properly calibrated with the test results to account for the behaviour of the TRM confined masonry. From the results obtained in this study, it is believed that TRM jacketing is a promising solution for the confinement of masonry columns. © 2020 The Authors