Knowledge-Based Approach for the Structural Assessment of Monumental Buildings: Application to Case Studies

Abstract

Historical buildings are characterized by a high level of complexity due to a long realization process often resulting in an overall lack of information and in a structural behavior that is more similar to a "structural aggregate" rather than to a "single building". The assessment of the static safety and seismic vulnerability then requires a multidisciplinary and multilevel approach including a deep and accurate preliminary knowledge phase before performing structural analyses. In the present paper, a consolidated knowledge-based procedure is presented and applied to four case studies in Italy. Interest is focused on the knowledge phase, combining critical-historical analysis to in situ architectural, geometrical, structural, material, and geotechnical aspects. The knowledge phase proves to be fundamental in understanding the structural behavior of cultural heritage, with special attention to the determination and analysis of local mechanisms and vulnerability elements and allowing to validate and give reason to numerical results.

Macroseismic risk classification of historical constructions: the LEXSIS approach

“…Data concerning the morphological evolution, geometrical characteristics, and structural and architectural features are needed to recognise the structural units inside the aggregate and achieve reliable and meaningful results. The critical/historical analysis helps in understanding the building's construction phases: monumental structures are the result of a long and complicated process, usually not fully known or properly recorded, direct response to functional and architectural needs (Lagomarsino 2006;Caprili and Puncello 2019;Ramírez et al 2019). This procedure determines the non-homogeneous areas within the building, associating-where possible-each portion/structural component to a specific construction phase, checking the assumptions' reliability through detailed investigations.…”

Application of steel in refurbishment of earthquake-prone buildings

“…For example, dynamic structural parameters collected in this way provide a basis for evaluation of the numerical structural model accuracy and for determination of uncertain structural parameters, such as the modulus of elasticity and soil characteristics. Details of these procedures can be found in relevant standard [8], and in specific examples from literature [14][15][16][17]. Test procedures, inspection lists, and other data collected for this purpose, must be documented and referred to in the retrofitting design documentation [8].…”

Investigations of masonry churches seismic performance with numerical models: application to a case study

“…Among the others, as presented in [6] and [7], a preliminary structural assessment of historical buildings may be carried out through a knowledge-based approach, validated on four case studies, and capable of identifying any local mechanism and vulnerability element. A specific methodology aimed at recognizing the collapse mechanisms of church architectural elements is proposed in [8].…”