Training on

Retrofitting Techniques and

Correction/exceptional Manual
29 May - 01 , June 2017, Kathmandu , Nepal

CONFINED MASONRY (CM)

Kuber Bogati
Structural Engineer
1
 Objectives
As a result of this session, you should be able to:

• Understand about Confined Masonry Building : Key Concepts

• Know why Confined Masonry in Nepal
• Compare Reinforced Masonry and Confined Masonry
• Compare RC Frame with URM Infill Vs. CM,
• Know Seismic Performance of CM Buildings
• Understand How CM Resists Earthquake Effects
• Damages in Confined Masonry in Past Earthquakes
• Know General Planning and Design Aspects
• Know Guidelines for Non-engineered CM Buildings
• Introduce with Minimum Requirement & Inspection Form of CM
2
 What is Confined Masonry (CM) Construction
• CM construction consists of masonry walls and horizontal and vertical RC
confining members built on all four sides of a masonry wall panel.

Key Components of a Confined Masonry (CM) Building

• Masonry walls : made either of clay brick or concrete block units

• Confining Elements :
• Vertical ties : (Tie-columns or Practical columns)
• Horizontal ties : (Tie-beams)
3
 What is Confined Masonry (CM) Construction
• CM construction consists of masonry walls and horizontal and vertical RC
confining members built on all four sides of a masonry wall panel.

Key Components of a Confined Masonry (CM) Building

• Masonry walls : made either of clay brick or concrete block units

• Confining Elements :
• Vertical ties : (Tie-columns or Practical columns)
• Horizontal ties : (Tie-beams)
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What is Confined Masonry (CM) Construction

CONFINED MASONRY

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Confined Masonry Construction
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What is Confined Masonry (CM) Construction

CONFINED MASONRY

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 Structural Components of a Confined Masonry (CM) Building

• Confining Elements : Provide restraint to masonry walls and protect them from
complete disintegration even in major EQs.

• Confining members are effective in

• Enhancing the stability and integrity of masonry walls for IP & OOP EQ
Loads
• Enhancing the strength (resistance) of masonry walls under EQ loads
• Reducing the brittleness of masonry walls under EQ loads

• Masonry walls : Transmit the gravity load from the slab(s) above down to the
foundation. The walls act as bracing panels, which resist horizontal EQ. forces.
Must be confined by concrete ties

• Floor and Roof Slabs : acts as diaphragms, transmit gravity and lateral loads to
the walls

• Plinth Band : Transmits the load from the walls down to the foundation.

• Foundation : Transmits the loads from the structure to the soils 8

 Construction Masonry (CM) – Global Context
• Evolved through informal process based on performance in earthquake
• Practiced in central and south American countries since as early as 1930’s and
40’s
• Currently practiced in several countries of high seismic risks- Latin, America,
Mediterranean Europe, Iran, Indonesia, China and in India (late comer)
• CM if Properly built, shows satisfactory performance in severe earthquakes in
the past

• 1985 Mexico earthquake (M8.0)

• 2001 La paz earthquake (elsalvador) (M7.7)
• 2004 Sumtra earthquake (Indonesia) (M9.0)
• 2007 Pisco earthquake (Peru) (M8.0)
• 2010 Chile earthquake (M8.8) and others

• Confined masonry network established in 2008 under WHE with two objectives
• To improve design and construction of CM where is currently in use
• To introduce CM in areas where it can reduce seismic risks

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 World Wide Practices
1. Chile
2. Colombia
3. Mexico
4. Peru
5. Argentina
6. Eurocode
7. Algeria
8. China
9. Iran
10.Indonesia
11.India
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 Confined Masonry in Nepal - Context
• Construction of reinforced concrete frame and masonry wall is trending in cities
and towns

• Heavy damage observed in those construction in the last earthquake even in low
PGA and spectral acceleration

• Non-ductile RC frame construction

• Unreinforced masonry walls vulnerable to lateral loading

• The presence of wall is in RC construction is not utilized as well as the

consequence of irregularity is overlooked

 Confined masonry construction provides opportunity for improved performance in

earthquake utilizing constriction from both RC and masonry components
[technologies which require similar (preferably lower) level of construction skills and
are economically viable]
 Its simple in design and analogues to conventional construction of RC frame with
walls (EXTENSIVE ENGINEERING INPUT NOT REQUIRED)
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 Reinforced Masonry vs. Confined Masonry

• Reinf. Enhance strength, Stability

• Corners, T-junction, additional Location

Reinforced Concrete Frame Construction
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RC frame with URM infill vs. Confined Masonry

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RC frame with URM infill vs. Confined Masonry
 Integrity of wall and frame

 Construction sequence

Frame first, Wall later Wall first, Column/Beams later

Source : Tom Schacher

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 Seismic Performance of CM

Confined masonry construction is found in countries/regions

with very high seismic risk,

• Latin America (Mexico, Chile, Peru, Argentina),

• Mediterranean Europe (Italy, Slovenia),

• South Asia (Indonesia), and the Far East (China).

• In some countries (e.g. Italy) for almost 100 years

• If properly built, shows satisfactory seismic performance

EXTENSIVE ENGINEERING INPUT NOT REQUIRED!

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 Seismic Performance of CM

Oaxaca quake,
September 1999

Tecomán earthquake,
January 2003
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 Seismic Performance of CM
Confined masonry construction has been exposed to several
destructive earthquakes:

• 1985 Lloleo, Chile (magnitude 7.8)

• 1985 Mexico City, Mexico (magnitude 8.0)
• 2001 El Salvador (magnitude 7.7)
• 2003 Tecoman, Mexico (magnitude 7.6)
• 2007 Pisco, Peru (magnitude 8.0)
• 2003 Bam, Iran (magnitude 6.6)
• 2004 The Great Sumatra Earthquake and Tsunami, Indonesia
(magnitude 9.0)
• 2007 Pisco, Peru (magnitude 8.0)
• 2010 Maule, Chile earthquake (magnitude 8.8)
• 2010 Haiti earthquake (magnitude 7.0)

Confined masonry buildings performed very well in these major

earthquakes – some buildings were damaged, but no human
losses 19
 Seismic Performance of CM

A six-storey confined
masonry building
remained undamaged in
the August 2007 Pisco,
Peru earthquake
(Magnitude 8.0) while
many other masonry
buildings experienced
severe damage or
collapse

Confined Masonry Performed Very Well in Past

Earthquakes
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How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects

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 How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects

 Toothing : Monolithic action

 Horizontal Reinforcement
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How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects

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Mechanism of shear resistance for a confined masonry wall panel
 How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects

Confined Masonry Building : Vertical Truss Model (left) and Collapse at the
Ground Floor Level (right)

 Masonry : Diagonal Struts

 RC : Tension/compression
 Cracking at G.F. (soft story) : horizontal reinforcement 24
 How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects

Figure 8. Critical regions in a confined masonry building: a) a general diagram

showing critical regions in the RC tie-columns

 Masonry : Diagonal Struts

 RC : Tension/compression
 Cracking at G.F. (soft story) : horizontal reinforcement 25
 How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects…

Failure modes characteristic of CM Walls :

• Shear Failure Mode (due to IP Seismic Loads)

• Flexural Failure Mode (due to OOP Loads)

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How Confined Masonry Buildings Resist Earthquake Effects…

Shear Failure Mode (due to IP Seismic Loads)

Flexural Failure Mode (due to OOP Loads) 29

Key Factors Influencing Seismic Resistance of CM Structures

• Wall Density : Strength

• Masonry Units and Mortar : (Stronger)

• Tie -Columns : (Ductility & Stability)

• Horizontal Wall Reinforcement

• Openings : 10% , Load path,

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 Key Factors Influencing Seismic Resistance of CM Structures…

Horizontal Wall Reinforcement

The walls with larger

openings develop diagonal
cracks

Failure modes in the confined masonry walls with openings

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Damages in Confined Masonry in Past
Earthquakes

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 Damage Observation: Topics

1.Masonry damage (in-and out-of-plane)

2.RC tie-columns

3.Tie-beam-to-tie-column joints

4.Confining elements around openings

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In-plane shear failure of masonry walls at the base
level - hollow clay blocks (Cauquenes)

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In-plane shear failure of masonry walls at the base
level - hollow clay blocks (Cauquenes)

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 Out-of-Plane Wall Damage

• An example of out-of-plane
damage observed in a three-storey
building
• The damage concentrated at the
upper floor levels
• The building had concrete floors
and timber truss roof
• The same building suffered severe
in-plane damage
Damage at the
2nd floor level

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Tie-Column Failure

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Buckling of a Tie-Column due to the Toe Crushing

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Shear Failure of RC Tie-Columns

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Inadequate Anchorage of Tie-Beam Reinforcement

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Deficiencies in Tie-Beam – to - Tie – Column Joint
Reinforcement Detailing

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Absence of Confining Elements at the Openings

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In-Plane Shear Cracking – the Effect of Confinement

Unconfined openings Confined openings

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 Key Causes of Damage in CM

1.Inadequate wall density

2.Poor quality of masonry materials and construction

3.Inadequate detailing of reinforcement in confining

elements

4.Absence of confining elements at openings

5.Geotechnical issues

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General Planning and Design Aspects

• Architectural Guideline

• Construction Guideline

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 Architectural Guideline

1. Plan Shape : Rectangular

NO
YES

IRREGULAR
SYMMENTRICAL

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 Architectural Guideline

2. Plan Shape : Length-to-width ratio less than 4 times

YES
NO

POORLY PROPORTIONED PLAN WELL PROPORTIONED PLAN

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 Architectural Guideline

3. Walls should be in a symmetrical

NO YES

INADEQUATE PLAN : LAYOUT ADEQUATE SHAPE

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 Architectural Guideline

4. Walls should be continuous up the building height

NO YES

LOAD PATH NOT CLEAR LOAD PATH CLEAR

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 Architectural Guideline
5. Opening : same position up the building height
#Vertical ties : At both sides ( if opening <1.5 Sq.m.) (To
produce diagonal Strut Action)

NO YES

POOR LOCATION OF WINDOW GOOD LOCATION OF WINDOW

AND DOOR OPENING AND DOOR OPENING
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 Architectural Guideline
6. Confining Elements : Tie-beams at 3m vertical spacing
: Tie-columns at 4m
: Wall to wall intersection
: Free end of a wall

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 Architectural Guideline
7. Walls : At least three fully confined walls should be
provided in each direction
YES
NO

Inadequate Wall Distribution Adequate Wall Distribution

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 Architectural Guideline
8. Walls Density : At least 5 % in each of two orthogonal
direction
𝑻𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑿 − 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏
𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑫𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚 =
𝑺𝒖𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝑭𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒂 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝒃𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈

Eurocode 8 (1996)
a) At least 2% for a site with a design ground accln up to
0.2g (corresponding to seismic zone II of India
b) At least 4% for a site with a design ground accln up to
0.3g (corresponding to seismic zone III of India
c) At least 5% for a site with a design ground accln up to
0.4g (corresponding to seismic zone IV of India
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 Architectural Guideline
9. Building Height : Low-to medium-rise (Eurocode 8,
1996)

Eurocode 8 (1996)
a) Up to 4-story high for a site with a design ground
accln up to 0.2g (corresponding to seismic zone II of
India
b) Up to 3-story high for a site with a design ground
accln up to 0.3g (corresponding to seismic zone III of
India
c) Up to 2-story high for a site with a design ground
accln up to 0.4g (corresponding to seismic zone IV of
India 56
 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings

𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒚 ∶ 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝑻𝒘𝒐

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings

𝒂. 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝟏. 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑫𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚

Walls Density : At least 5 % in each of two orthogonal direction

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒂. 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔 2. Openings

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒂. 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔 3. Wall Spacing

• Building with Flexible floor should not exceed

4.0 m in high seismic region

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒂. 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔
4. Wall Dimensions and H/t ratios Restrictions

• Minimum wall thickness 110 mm

• H/t : less than 25, for one or two storey

• H/L : Should not less be than 0.5

• Maximum wall height : 3 m

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒂. 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔
5. Parapets and Gable Walls
• Parapets

• RC tie column should extent to the top : (1.2m)

• Otherwise Parapet height : 0.5m

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
6. Toothing at the Wall – to – tie-column interface

Toothing in confined masonry walls: a) machine-made hollow units, b) hand-made solid

units, and c) provision of horizontal reinforcement when toothing is not possible. 63
 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
6. Toothing at the Wall – to – tie-column interface

Toothing applications: a) recommended construction practice (S. Brzev), and b) not

recommended - absence of toothing in concrete block construction (C. Meisl). 64
 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)
𝟏. 𝑺𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)
𝟏. 𝑺𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings

𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)

2. Minimum Dimensions
• Tie – column size : (Depth x Width) : 150 mm x t

• Tie-beam Size : same as tie-column size or tx150 mm

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)
3. Reinforcements
• Minimum 4 reinforcing bars for tie - column , 2 tie - beam

• Bar size : 12 mm dia (Fe 500 or Fe 415)

• Stirrups/C-hooks : 6 mm dia @150 mm at center

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It is preferred to place beam reinforcement outside
the column reinforcement cage

NO
YES

69
 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)
3. Reinforcements

70
 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)
3. Reinforcements

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒃. Confining Elements (Tie-Columns and Tie-Beams)
4. Construction issues

• Confining elements must be carefully constructed

• Slump : 125 mm recommended

• Concrete can be cast in three lifts when continuous is not

possible

• RC tie-columns should not be cast above the completed

portion of the wall

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
5. Foundation and Plinth Construction
• Similar as traditional masonry construction

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
5. Foundation and Plinth Construction
• Similar as traditional masonry construction

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings

𝒄. Additional Requirements for Building with Flexible Diaphragms

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 Guidelines for Non-Engineered CM Buildings
𝒅. 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑸𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚
• Construction quality has a significant bearing in seismic
performance of CM building

• Properly designed and built CM buildings performed well

in past earthquakes in most cases

• Poorly built ones experienced damage

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An Example Illustrating Wall Density Calculation

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An Example Illustrating Wall Density Calculation
Storey : two
Seismic Zone : V
Wall thickness : 110 mm

Typical Floor Plan of a Confined Masonry Building 78

An Example Illustrating Wall Density Calculation
1. Floor area per floor = 4*9.2 = 36.8 m^2
Total floor area for 2 floors
TOTAL FLOOR AREA = 2*36.8 = 73.6 m^2

2. Wall density in the longitudinal direction

Wall area ( walls 1 & 2 only) :

Wall Area = [9.2+(9.2-1.2)]*(0.11) = 1.9 m^2

𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂
𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑫𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚 =
𝑻𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑭𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂

𝟏. 𝟗
= = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟐𝟔 = 2.6 %
𝟕𝟑. 𝟔 79
An Example Illustrating Wall Density Calculation
3. Wall density in the Transverse direction
Wall area ( walls A, B & C) :

Wall Area=[4.0+(4.0-1.2)+4.0-1.2]*(0.11) = 1.1 m^2

𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 𝟏. 𝟏
𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑫𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚 = = = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟏𝟓 = 1.50 %
𝑻𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑭𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 𝟕𝟑. 𝟔

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THANK YOU

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