A Model for Comprehensive Material Degradation and Strength Characteristics Assessment of Historic Masonry Structures

Historic buildings are susceptible to damage resulting from material degradation, deterioration of structural properties, changes in loads, overloading, and extraordinary events, which manifest as defects and flaws. These structures are also modernised, rebuilt, and adapted to new functions. In some cases, a rapid assessment of the structural condition is necessary. In practice, it is essential to maintain the safety of structures and their components, which is achieved by conducting an inventory and assessing the technical condition of structural elements and built-in materials. A numerical model was developed using macro-elements, and the practical applications of this model in strength analyses of degraded materials and sections of masonry structures are presented herein. The proposed approach was generalised and extended to include a classification of damaged masonry structures, which can be helpful and applied in indexing and searching databases of building structures, as well as in AI-assisted automatic pattern recognition. This resulted in a coherent and comprehensive approach to assessing the technical and structural condition of historic masonry buildings in use, as well as those undergoing repair, reconstruction, and modernisation.