Repair and conservation of masonry structures

Numerical modeling of repair and strengthening techniques aimed at improving the mechanical behavior of masonry structures is a challenging task. The complexity of proper models to represent the great variability of existing masonry types and their constituent materials, the variety of aggregations in types of construction, and their possible current deteriorated state are combined with the uncertainties of interventions in terms of design, installation, and effectiveness. According to the main parameters characterizing common interventions on masonry constructions, this chapter describes the modeling strategies applicable to a series of enhancing techniques to reestablish overall collaboration among building components and then to repair and strengthen structural elements. The techniques are applied one by one, and then in combination, in order to have a proper overview of the possibilities of intervention and their effects on building behavior. Examples of the application of such a process on buildings damaged by earthquakes are provided, and the results obtained by equivalent frame and finite element numerical approaches are compared.