SEISMIC PERFORMANCE OF NEPALESE SCHOOLS: A FULL-SCALE TEST OF A TYPICAL UNREINFORCED MASONRY WALL

Abstract

This paper presents the preliminary results of an experimental investigation on the seismic performance of a large-scale typical Nepalese school URM wall. Hence, it proposes a retrofitting method for its strengthening. The test subjected a 5m x 3m masonry brick wall, set in 1:6 cement–sand mortar, to a two-way ramp cyclic loading to determine shear cracking failure. The results show that the wall exhibited a Grade 2 type of failure that indicates a slight structural damage with both diagonal and horizontal cracks, at 4mm displacement loading, in the mortar joints. The failure pattern is similar to those obtained in similar works in the literature.