Masonry constructions: Mechanical models and numerical applications

This monograph firstly provides a detailed description of the constitutive equation of masonry-like materials, clearly setting out its most important features. Since the numerical techniques for determining an approximated solution to the equilibrium problem make use of the tangent stiffness matrix, the derivative of the stress with respect to the strain is calculated explicitly. After proving the uniqueness of the solution, in terms of stress, to the equilibrium problem and describing a numerical method, some simple equilibrium problems are solved, both, explicitly and numerically and the solutions are compared. Then, some applications are presented which deal with important monuments with the aim of modeling eventual strengthening operations and assessing their effects on their static behavior. Finally, a ladle employed in the steel-iron industry is studied and the behavior of the refractory material lining the metallic vessel is determined.