Sharif Digital Repository

Usage of masonry system in many regions of the world like the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East, India, and China is still significantly high, despite their highly energy and intensive emission. Most of the failures in this system are caused by low ductility of cement mortars. This type of failure could be seen in masonry structures in areas in east Iran after Kermanshah earthquake in 2017. The present study investigates the shear bond characteristics of structures constructed by masonry using green materials. “Taftan” natural pozzolan and two types of rice husk ash (RHA) were used in mix design of used mortars as green materials. In this investigation, a modified direct shear test... 

Structures of tapered geometry are customarily used in a variety of applications. The analysis of such structures is usually made through finite element method using traditional beam, shell or brick elements. In this paper, a new tapered superelement is presented that lends itself to modeling revolving geometries under lateral, axial and torsional loads. The presented tapered superelement has 16 nodes. The performance of this element under static and dynamic loading and in rotating condition is examined. It is shown that this element yields accurate results with higher computational efficiency compared to conventional elements. Furthermore, it is verified that a single tapered superelement... 

Many benefits of the MgO-C refractory bricks such as excellent corrosion resistance, high thermal shock resistance, good mechanical strength at high temperatures, and permeability have attracted attention of consumers in various industries. But on the other hand, the low oxidation resistance of these refractory bricks at high temperatures has restricted their application. For this purpose, in this research study, the impact of Nano-ZrSiO4 addition on microstructure and performance of MgO-C refractory was investigated. 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 wt % of Nano-ZrSiO4 was added to compositions. After samples preparation, all specimens tempered and fired (in a coke bed) at the 250 °C and 1600 °C for 8... 

The effects of graphite content on the density and oxidation behavior of MgO-C refractory samples were studied. The samples were formulated with various amounts of graphite and their oxidation behavior was investigated (in an isothermal condition); using a Thermo Gravimetric system (TG), in air and at temperatures ranging from 900"C to 1450"C. The preliminary results showed that the porosity and density of tempered samples were decreased when the graphite content was increased. However, after heating the samples at higher temperatures, the decreasing rate of porosity was lowered. At the beginning of the oxidation process, the rate of weight loss was high, but was gradually decreased when the... 

After an earthquake, the residual stiffness and strength of structural elements are typically estimated based on a qualitative visual inspection of cracks that is prone to error. In this paper a new approach is proposed to automatically estimate the updated stiffness and strength of damaged unreinforced masonry walls by characterization of crack patterns by a mathematical index. It is shown that structural and textural fractal dimensions of a crack pattern reflect the extent of cracking and the type of cracking or crushing, i.e., whether the cracks pass through joints or whether bricks have been damaged and crushed. Using results of six quasi-static cyclic tests on unreinforced brick masonry... 

Kinetics of oxidation of MgO-C refractory bricks containing 14.3% graphite, 80.9% magnesia, and 4.8% phenolic resin is investigated comprehensively. Effect of temperature and grain size distribution on the rate of oxidation of graphite is evaluated by application of a mathematical model developed on the basis of shrinking core/progressive conversion regime to the gas-solid processes involved. Incorporation of the experimental data into the mathematical model indicates that a mixed controlling mechanism governs the oxidation rate. Three activation energies were recognized: (a) 68 kJ/mol for chemical adsorption of gas on the surface of the graphite flakes, (b) 22 kJ/mol for pore diffusion of... 

The authors regret that there was an error in the XRD pattern for pumice shown in Fig. 8. The authors have re-analyzed the pumice to address the concerns over the reliability of the pattern due to the presence of noises, and the updated XRD pattern has been shown in Fig. 8 here for more accuracy of the presented information. It is noteworthy that this change does not affect any of the conclusions. The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused. © 2021 Elsevier Ltd  

This paper studied the durability, microstructure, and fire behavior of lightweight mortars based on cement, metakaolin (MK), ultrafine ground granulated blast furnace slag (UGGBFS), ceramic waste powder (CWP), and clay brick waste powder (CBWP). Two sets of mixes were prepared with two types of lightweight aggregate including lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA) and pumice aggregate. Regarding the durability assessment, the electrical resistivity and water absorption of the mortars were measured. The UGGBFS-based alkali-activated mortar with pumice aggregate exhibited the highest electrical resistivity and lowest water absorption, while CBWP-based geopolymer mortar with LECA showed... 

This paper develops the seismic damage models of brick masonry veneer attached to the masonry infill without metal ties and assesses the life cycle cost of veneers subjected to earthquake excitation. Even though anchoring veneers to the backup wall has been prescribed in recent building codes, most of the existing brick veneers in seismic prone areas around the world lack the anchoring details. Besides, the damage and consequence models of masonry façades have not been presented in the FEMA-P58 database restricting detailed performance evaluation of buildings with unanchored masonry veneers. This study develops detailed finite element models to simulate various failure modes of the masonry... 

Hollow Spherical Structures such as spherical pressure vessels are widely used in industries. Using faster numerical methods to solve these spherical problems has been one of the research interests in the last decade. Super elements are elements capable of producing the same accurate result in comparison with several conventional elements. In this paper, a new spherical super element is designed and implemented to study the static deformation and modal analysis of a spherical structure. In the static analysis mean of the inner radial displacements of the hollow structure under the internal pressure is evaluated. also performing the modal analysis, natural frequencies of the structure under... 

Special superelements are often used to improve the computational efficiency and improve accuracy of finite element modeling. Structures with tapered and spherical geometry exist in many engineering problems. In this work, special tapered and spherical superelements are presented that can be used for modeling of tapered and spherical bodies in thermo mechanical analyses with computational efficiency. The performance of these superelements under thermal and structural loads is demonstrated by presenting several examples and comparing the results with those from conventional 3D brick elements, which shows high accuracy at reduced computational cost  

A single storey full-scale unreinforced brick masonry building with confined walls was designed based on Iranian building code and constructed on the shaking table facility of EERC of Sharif University of Technology. The model consisted of plain brick masonry walls confined with concrete tie columns and steel bond beams and had a typical jack-arch roof system. Wall panels included openings of different dimensions making it possible to investigate the effects of shape, geometry and location of openings. The model was subjected to several seismic excitations, consisting of scaled records of Bam 2003, Tabas 1978 and Elcentro 1940 earthquakes as well as a harmonic acceleration with a gradually... 

In order to evaluate the seismic behavior of confined masonry buildings, based on Iranian seismic code design, a single storey full-scale unreinforced confined brick masonry building has been constructed on the shaking table facility at the Earthquake Engineering Research Center (EERC) of Sharif University of Technology. The 4 by 4 meter model consists of four brick masonry walls confined with reinforced mortar tie-columns and steel bond beams, with a traditional jack-arch roof system. Three of the wall panels contained openings of different sizes and geometries. The model was subjected to the scaled earthquake records of Bam, Tabas and El Centro, as well as a harmonic acceleration with... 

This study examined the bond at the interface of masonry bricks and fiber-reinforced polymer when exposed to five environments. Three fabrics (aramid, carbon, and glass) and one type of epoxy resin were used. A total of 375 brick-fiber-reinforced polymer specimens were made using wet lay-up technic and exposed to chemical solutions at four pH values (2.5, 7, 10, and 12.5) and substitute seawater. The effect of dry heat on the bond at the interface was also investigated. Single-lap shear tests were then carried out on the samples after 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 13 weeks of exposure. The experimental results indicated that freshwater and seawater had a considerable effect on the bond strength of... 

This research investigated the long-term environmental effects on the bond at the interface between fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) and a masonry brick. Seven types of FRP fabrics were used and placed on the masonry brick using the wet lay-up technique. Unidirectional and bidirectional fibers made of aramid, carbon, and glass and also combination of these fabrics were used. A total of 525 specimens were exposed to five chemical solutions with pH values of 2.5, 7, 10, 12.5 and substitution sea water for 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. A chamber was also used to simulate the ultraviolent (UV) radiation on the specimens. A series of single-lap shear tests were performed on these specimens to determine... 

The principal objective involved in this research is to explore the mechanical behaviour of the binder using different mineral fillers such as stone dust (SD), brick dust (BD) and fly ash Class F (FA). Currently, a large quantity of roads is being constructed under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. It is a major concern for quality of road to with stand heavy loads. For the investigation of the quality of roads, it is mandatory to evaluate the behaviour of mineral fillers addition in asphalt mastic. Fatigue cracking, thermal cracking and permanent deformation have been found a major common distress in the construction of road networks. In this study, the behaviour of... 

The purpose of this research was twofold; first, it focused on developing quantitative wastage models for rebar, concrete, brick, and cement, as major traditional bulk building materials, used in Tehran residential buildings. The primary results indicated that multiple linear regression was an apt tool to model the effects of the studied variables on materials wastage. In every developed wastage model, subtractive or accumulative effect of each studied variable was recognized by its coefficient value and sign. The developed models resulted in adjusted R2 values of 0.907, 0.875, 0.920, and 0.790, respectively, for rebar, cement, brick, and concrete waste. Cement, with average wastage of 8.57%... 

The purpose of this research was twofold; first, it focused on developing quantitative wastage models for rebar, concrete, brick, and cement, as major traditional bulk building materials, used in Tehran residential buildings. The primary results indicated that multiple linear regression was an apt tool to model the effects of the studied variables on materials wastage. In every developed wastage model, subtractive or accumulative effect of each studied variable was recognized by its coefficient value and sign. The developed models resulted in adjusted R2 values of 0.907, 0.875, 0.920, and 0.790, respectively, for rebar, cement, brick, and concrete waste. Cement, with average wastage of 8.57%...