Influence of Chained Masonry on the Seismic Response of Reinforced Concrete Buildings

The influence of chained masonry walls, which represents a special case of masonry infill without gap, on the seismic response of reinforced concrete buildings is extremely important due to their wide use in this type of building. We can consider the period of building as the key parameter to study this influence. In this article, we had carried out a comparative study of several 2D models of a multi-storey reinforced concrete building with a brick chained masonry wall using the response spectrum method in the ETABS finite element software, following the prescriptions of the current Algerian seismic code. This study included the use of the number of spans, the span length, the number of storeys, the thickness of the chained masonry wall, the ground soft storey, the openings in the walls, and the short column for studying the influence of these to the walls. The values from the numerical simulation were compared with those from the formula of the period of building, provided by both the Algerian and European codes. Based on the results obtained, we were able to assess the influence of chained masonry walls on the seismic response on this type of buildings. Through this article, we have concluded that these walls have a great influence on the overall behavior of reinforced concrete buildings under seismic loading. HIGHLIGHTS Clarify the importance of numerical simulation of chained masonry walls in the design of reinforced concrete buildings Give recommendations to the current Algerian seismic code for properly design the infilled buildings with chained masonry Know the great danger marked in the current conceptions, which neglect these walls in the phase of conception Give to the infilled reinforced concrete buildings an adequate design in case of earthquake loadings GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT