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Stability of the vertical bearing structures of the Syracuse Cathedral: experimental and numerical evaluation

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Abstract

In the present paper the results from a recent monitoring campaign and numerical analysis performed on the ancient Cathedral of Syracuse in Sicily are presented. The acoustic emission (AE) technique is adopted to assess the damage pattern evolution. The localization of the propagating cracks is obtained using six synchronized AE sensors. A clear correlation between the regional seismic activity and the AE acquisition data is shown. In fact the AE count rate presents peaks corresponding to the main seismic events. In addition, a numerical analysis of the vertical bearing structures of the Cathedral is presented. The nonlinear Finite Element model is particularly refined to account for the cracking in the most damaged pillar. Some recent seismic events in the area acted as crack propagators. The crack occurrence obtained from the numerical analysis agrees quite well with the crack localization provided by the AE monitoring.

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Acknowledgements

The financial support provided by the European Union (EU) Leonardo da Vinci Programme, ILTOF Project is gratefully acknowledged. Special thanks for their collaboration go to the Dr. M. Muti, to the Dr. Meloni and to the Dr. L. Regalbuto from the Syracuse Superintendence for Cultural Heritage.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Structural Engineering and Geotechnics, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, Torino, Italy

    Alberto Carpinteri, G. Lacidogna, S. Invernizzi & A. Manuello

  2. Department of Structural Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy

    L. Binda

Authors
  1. Alberto Carpinteri
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  2. G. Lacidogna
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  3. S. Invernizzi
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  4. A. Manuello
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  5. L. Binda
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Correspondence to Alberto Carpinteri.

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Carpinteri, A., Lacidogna, G., Invernizzi, S. et al. Stability of the vertical bearing structures of the Syracuse Cathedral: experimental and numerical evaluation. Mater Struct 42, 877–888 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-008-9429-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-008-9429-z

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