Quasi-Static Testing of Cantilever Masonry Shear Wall Segments

The primary objective of this thesis was to study how the behavior of flexure-dominated masonry shear-wall segments is affected by changes in the normalized axial load and the percentage of vertical reinforcement. Six reinforced masonry shear-wall segment were constructed and tested at the Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory of the University of Texas at Austin. Specimens were 96-in. wide and 96-in. high (aspect ratio equal to 1.0) and were tested with different combinations of axial load ratio (zero and 0.10) and vertical reinforcement ratios (0.33% and 0.16%). Specimens met the 2011 MSJC Code requirements for special reinforced masonry shear walls, and were tested under quasi-static in-plane reversed cyclic loads. The specimens exhibited predominantly flexural behavior, as expected. Specimens exhibited high displacement ductility (5.6 to 16.7), as expected for flexure-dominated specimens. Specimens constructed with “green” units behaved essentially like otherwise identical specimens constructed with conventional (“gray”) units.