Experimental Study of Solid and Hollow Clay Brick Masonry Walls Retrofitted by Steel Fiber-Reinforced Mortar Coating

An experimental study including reverse quasi-static cyclic tests on solid and hollow Unreinforced Masonry walls strengthened with thin steel fiber-reinforced mortar (SFRM) coating is herein presented. Three types of mortars containing nano-silica and three different typologies of short high-strength steel fibers are used. Compared to traditional coating techniques, the proposed strengthening method adopts a thin layer (25 mm tick) of SFRM anchored on the wall surface by means of steel connectors. Results show that this novel technique provides significant enhancement in terms of strength and stiffness. Critical considerations on the in-plane lateral resistance of masonry walls are reported.