Seismic behaviour of tall reinforced masonry shear walls

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Reinforced masonry (RM) has been used in Canada for more than 50 years, mostly for construction of low- and medium-rise buildings. The National Building Code of Canada 2015 (NBC 2015) permits the use of Ductile Shear Wall class for tall masonry buildings, but the height limit was set to 60 m (approximately 20 storeys) at sites characterized by moderate seismic hazard index (0.75 or less), and to 40 m (approximately 13 storeys) for high seismic hazard sites (seismic hazard index higher than 0.75). Although the NBC 2015 permits application of ductile RM wall class for construction of tall buildings in Canada, with the height limits comparable to buildings with RC shear walls, actual field applications of these buildings are still very limited. Only a few tall (20+ storey high) RM buildings have been constructed in Canada to date, mostly at sites with low to moderate seismic hazard. Limited field applications of tall buildings in Canada can be partially attributed to a scarce database of past experimental research studies on the subject.The proposed project will examine seismic response of Tall Reinforced Masonry (TRM) shear walls for field applications in Canada with opportunities to export this knowledge to other countries. The proposal includes a robust experimental and analytical research program which will be carried out at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver campus. Seismic response of TRM shear wall specimens characterized by high aspect ratios (in the range from 7.0 to 25.0) will be examined at the material, structural component, and structural system level. A hybrid experimental and numerical simulation will be performed at the system level to study seismic response of TRM buildings subjected to earthquake excitation. This is believed to be the first application of hybrid technology on TRM wall structures on a global scale. The experimental program proposed in this project will provide much needed experimental evidence related to seismic performance of TRM shear walls which is required for developers, architects, and engineers engaged in design and construction of tall buildings. The guidelines resulting from the experimental and analytical studies will provide required tools for design engineers who currently do not have adequate training related to design of tall masonry buildings.