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Seismic Retrofit of Adobe Constructions

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Strengthening and Retrofitting of Existing Structures

Part of the book series: Building Pathology and Rehabilitation ((BUILDING,volume 9))

Abstract

Earthen construction has been widely used since ancient times. Currently, this type of construction is used by approximately one third of the world population. In comparison to other, more modern building materials, such as brick masonry, reinforced concrete, and steel, earth is costless and primarily accessible. For these reasons, it is massively used by no-income or low-income families, in developing countries and in communities where the mentioned industrial materials were never incorporated, frequently without adequate attention being paid to structural safety and reinforcement issues. Moreover, buildings are generally constructed and rehabilitated by non-specialized staff, with empirical knowledge passed through generations, lacking information and understanding of their structural behaviour. The seismic behaviour of earthen structures is typically characterized by fragile and sudden failure, because earth is a brittle material with very low tensile strength. Thus, earthen constructions and, in particular, adobe constructions, if not adequately designed and strengthened may perform very poorly when subjected to seismic loads. There are, in fact, various examples of recent earthquakes that caused severe damage to earthen buildings. The study of the structural behaviour of earthen constructions and the development of effective strengthening solutions are fundamental. In the present chapter, an introduction to earthen construction, including a brief description of its use throughout the world and main vulnerabilities, is presented. The structural behaviour of adobe construction is explained, in particular when subjected to seismic demands. Different repair and strengthening solutions are presented, together with various experimental studies conducted by different authors. A short review of the existing standards and codes that address the seismic design of earthen buildings is also presented. Finally, a brief reference is made to the numerical modelling of adobe construction.

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Acknowledgements

This research was financially supported by Project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007457—CONSTRUCT—Institute of R&D in Structures and Construction, funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE2020—Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) and by national funds through Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT). This work was also carried out within the framework of the project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016737 (PTDC/ECM-EST/2777/2014), financed by FEDER funds through Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (COMPETE) and by national funds through Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT). The funding provided is kindly acknowledged.

The authors would also like to acknowledge the contribution of:

University of Aveiro;

Laboratory of Earthquake and Structural Engineering (LESE), Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto;

Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Civil Engineering Section, Department of Engineering, Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, San Miguel, Lima 32, Lima, Peru

    Julio Vargas-Neumann

  2. Barreiro School of Technology, Polytechnic Institute of Setubal, 2839-001, Lavradio, Portugal

    Cristina Oliveira

  3. CONSTRUCT-LESE, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal

    Cristina Oliveira

  4. CONSTRUCT-LESE, Civil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal

    Dora Silveira & Humberto Varum

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  1. Julio Vargas-Neumann
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  2. Cristina Oliveira
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  3. Dora Silveira
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  4. Humberto Varum
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Correspondence to Humberto Varum .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, RISCO, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal

    Aníbal Costa

  2. CONSTRUCT-LESE, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal

    António Arêde

  3. CONSTRUCT-LESE, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Humberto Varum

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Vargas-Neumann, J., Oliveira, C., Silveira, D., Varum, H. (2018). Seismic Retrofit of Adobe Constructions. In: Costa, A., Arêde, A., Varum, H. (eds) Strengthening and Retrofitting of Existing Structures. Building Pathology and Rehabilitation, vol 9. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5858-5_4

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