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Brickwork is a composite material with bricks as the building units and the mortar as the jointing
material. When this two element combined to form a brickwork unit, the properties of the materials
influences the strength of the brickwork. Short prisms have been tested under axial compressive load
using two types of masonry units: clay brick and flyash brick using flyash cement mortar. The brick
masonry is reinforced with woven wire mesh at the alternate bed joint and tested for its axial strength
and elastic modulus of the prisms specimens. They confirm that masonry prisms may be used for
determining the basic compressive strength. Areas needing further investigation include the effect of
moisture on the strength of brick masonry and the strength of eccentrically loaded brick work. In the
present research, design strength was determined.
INTRODUCTION
Buildings that are constructed by using bricks have high REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
compressive strength and durability against foreign
disturbances. Structural components of the buildings that The present research included a study on compressive
are built out of bricks also have multiple resistances strength of brick masonry subjected to axial loading. The
against heat and sound. Due to the resistances, the study focuses on the effect of the masonry components
masonry components also act as insulator within certain with different types of bonding on compressive strength.
part of the building. Bricks also provide aesthetic Mohamad et al. (2005) carried out experimental tests on
surfacing to the brick work. In term of workability and masonry prisms subjected to compression. The failure
economy, the usage of brick masonry makes the whole mechanism of masonry depends on the difference of
building construction easier, faster and cheaper. Masonry elastic modulus between brick unit and mortar. The
is a non-homogeneous material with two constitutive mortar governed the non-linear behavior of masonry.
elements: bricks and mortar. The mortar has different Oliveira et al. (2000) carried out the tests on prisms under
functions inside the masonry, that is, it forms a layer to cyclic loading and the stress-strain behaviour of the brick
assemble the bricks and permits a uniform transmission prisms showed a bilinear pre-peak behaviour. Gumaste
of the internal forces. It is important that the mechanical et al. (2007) studied the properties of brick masonry using
properties of the masonry depend on the mechanical table moulded bricks and wire-cut bricks from India with
properties of the constitutive materials, as well as depend various types of mortars. The table moulded brick
on the arrangement of the bricks inside the masonry. masonry using lean mortar failed due to loss of bond
Table 1. Specimen details for axial compressive strength of the brick masonry.
Stack bonded unreinforced clay brick prism (CBP) and fly ash brick Elastic properties of clay brick masonry and fly ash brick
prism (FBP) of size 230 × 110 × 420 mm were prepared using clay masonry for unreinforced (CBP, CBP10 and CBP20) and
brick and fly ash brick of size 230 × 110 × 70 mm in 1:6 cement
mortars with 0, 10 and 20% replacement of fine aggregate with fly
reinforced (with wire mesh) brick masonry (RCBP,
ash (CBP10, CBP20, FBP10 and FBP20). The clay brick prism RCBP10 and RCBP20) were studied. Stress-strain
(CBPR, CBP10R and CBP20R) and fly ash brick prism (FBPR, characteristics of brick masonry were examined through
FBP10R and FBP20R) were reinforced with hexagonal woven wire prism test as per IS 1905 (1987) and ASTM C 67 (2009).
mesh at the alternate bed course as shown in Figure 2 and tested The stress-strain behaviour of both unreinforced and
under compression. Mortar joint thickness of 10 to 12 mm was used reinforced clay brick masonry in 1:6 cement mortar with
for all the prism specimens. The specimens were subjected to an
axial load up to failure of the test specimen. partial replacement of fine aggregate with flyash is
The nature of the stresses developed in the masonry unit and the indicated in Figure 6. From the stress – strain behaviour,
mortar when the brick masonry is subjected to compression greatly the compressive strength of reinforced clay brick
depends upon its relative elastic modulus (E). During compression masonry in 1:6 cement mortar with 20% replacement of
of brick masonry prisms constructed with stiffer bricks, mortar of the fine aggregate with fly ash exhibited higher compressive
bed joint may have a tendency to expand laterally more than the
strength and the reinforced brick masonry yielded for
bricks because of lesser stiffness of mortar, Hemant (2007).
However, the mortar is confined laterally at the brick mortar more deformation.
interface by the bricks because of the bond between them; The stress-strain curve was found to be linear until 1/3rd
therefore, shear stresses at the brick mortar interface result in an of the ultimate stress (f a) after which cracks began to form
internal state of stress consisting of tri-axial compression in mortar in the mortar introducing the non-linearity as shown in
and bilateral tension coupled with axial compression in brick as Figure 6. The stress-strain curve of both unreinforced and
shown in Figure 3. Failure in brickwork occurs when the tensile
stress in the brick reaches its ultimate tensile strength, Lenczer
reinforced fly ash brick masonry with three types of
(1972). Under uni-axial compression, stack bonded brick masonry mortar is shown in Figure 7. Secant modulus of elasticity
prism expands laterally in the plane perpendicular to the direction of at 60% of the ultimate strength of the specimen is
loading causes vertical splitting as shown in Figure 4. calculated from stress-strain curves.
Freeda et al. 137
σy
y
x σy
σx
z
σz σz
σx
σy
tm
σy σx
tb
σz σz
σx σy
σy
Figure 4. Failure of clay brick prism and fly ash brick prism.
stress-strain curve of fly ash brick masonry was found to In general, the brick strength is usually greater than the
be non-linear. mortar strength, hence ‘α’ must be greater than ‘β’ as
The compressive strength of the unreinforced clay brick reported as reported by Hemant et al. (2007). However,
prism varies in the range of 1.69 to 1.85 MPa whereas the axial strength of brick masonry is calculated based on
the unreinforced fly ash brick prism varies from 2.4 to the experimental results of the present study, the value of
2.68 MPa. With partial replacement of fine aggregate in ‘k’ is obtained by least square methods of regression
the mortar with the fly ash, the load carrying capacity was analysis as 0.35.
increased and the strain yielded much more indicating
ductility in the mortar. From the above results, it was Axial strength of the brick masonry,
found that the reinforced (with woven wire mesh) brick
masonry resulted in better performance than the f a = 0 . 35 × f b
0 . 65
× fm
0 . 25
γmb – Elastic modulus ratio between the mortar and the found to be with the average variation of 5.9% with the
brick theoretical elastic modulus of the brick masonry. Areas
p – Reinforcement constant as elastic modulus ratio needing further investigation include the effect of
between the brick and the mesh moisture on the strength of brick masonry and the
For, Unreinforced clay brick masonry, CBP, p = 1.0 strength of eccentrically loaded brick work.
Reinforced clay brick masonry, CBPR, p = 0.65
Unreinforced fly ash brick masonry, FBP, p = 1.0
Reinforced fly ash brick masonry, FBPR, p = 1.35 Conclusions
tm – Thickness of the mortar in mm
tb – Thickness of the brick in mm (i) The mortar with the ratio of 1:6 cement mortar with
Em – Elastic modulus of the mortar in MPa 20% replacement of fine aggregate with fly ash exhibited
Eb – Elastic modulus of the brick in MPa a higher compressive strength than the control mix after
Emesh – Elastic modulus of the woven wire mesh in MPa 28 days of curing.
(ii) The compressive strength of unreinforced fly ash brick
The comparison of the equivalent homogenized elastic masonry was 34% more than the unreinforced clay brick
modulus of brick masonry with the observed experimental masonry. The reinforced fly ash brick masonry was
elastic modulus of the brick masonry is shown in Figure 20.7% more than the reinforced clay brick masonry.
9. (iii) The introduction of wire mesh in the clay brick
From the Figure 9, it was understood that the existence masonry resulted in an increase of load carrying capacity
of horizontal mesh reinforcement distributed the strain at by 25%, while the introduction of mesh in fly ash brick
the region of reinforced clay brick masonry which resulted masonry resulted in an increase of load carrying capacity
in reduction of the elastic modulus of the reinforced clay by 10% as the strength of the fly ash brick contributed
brick masonry. Further, the mesh reinforcement more in the brick masonry strength.
effectively influenced the distribution of the total strain (iv) Incorporation of fly ash in the brick masonry results in
through the clay brick masonry. It was noted that the the reaction of pozzolanas with the calcium hydrate which
effect of mesh reinforcement on the strain distribution of forms produced strong calcium silicate hydrates, thus
the fly ash brick masonry was found to be less. After enhancing the bond strength of the brick masonry with
observing the failure of the prism in the case of clay brick the modification of the microstructure of the mortar-brick
masonry with mesh reinforcement, the composite action unit interface.
was found to be less effective whereas in the case of fly (v) The elastic modulus of the brick masonry (Epm) was
ash brick masonry with mesh reinforcement, the determined with the prism strength (fpm).
composite action was very effective. The observed (vi) The equivalent homogenized elastic property of the
experimental elastic modulus of the brick masonry was masonry was derived with the elastic properties of brick,
Freeda et al. 141