ABSTRACT
Masonry aggregates constitute a large part of the structural typologies in historical centers worldwide. The peculiar characteristics of ancient aggregates (such as structural heterogeneity, uncertainties about walls connections, geometric irregularities and, usually, diffuses damage) suggest the use of analysis methods that investigate local failure mechanisms under seismic actions. In this work, the study of masonry aggregates subjected to horizontal actions through local analyses is presented. An upper bound limit analysis based on a NURBS (Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline) representation of the geometry of the whole construction and a mesh adaptation by Genetic Algorithm (GA) is adopted. The great efficiency of NURBS in the representation of curved geometries allows analyzing aggregates characterized by masonry arches and vaults with low computational effort. Since this procedure is fully automatic, local mechanisms on complex geometries can be assessed in an easy way. The analysis of a complex masonry aggregate is presented as meaningful case study.
