Diagonal compression tests on masonry walls strengthened with a GFRP mesh reinforced mortar coating

The paper presents the results of a broad experimental investigation conducted through diagonal compression tests on masonry specimens strengthened with a mortar coating applied on both surfaces of the wall and reinforced with a glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) mesh. Four types of masonry, three different types of masonry mortar and five diverse GFRP meshes for the reinforcement were considered. In particular, solid brick masonry 250 and 380 mm thick, two-leaf brick masonry with rubble conglomerate infill and rubble stone masonry were tested. The diagonal compression tests, performed on 60 square masonry specimens with loading-unloading cycles up to the collapse, evidenced a good effectiveness of the strengthening technique in terms of both resistance and ductility. Results also showed the resistance increment in reinforced samples is generally greater for weaker masonry types and, referring to a single masonry type, for specimens built with a weaker mortar. Furthermore, the different GFRP meshes influenced very little the resistance of specimens, but higher reinforcement contents induced a lower decrease of the diagonal load after the cracking.