A simplified evaluation of the influence of the bond pattern on the brickwork limit strength

The influence of the bond pattern on the in-plane limit strength of masonry is analyzed through a simplified procedure based on the application of the safe theorem of limit analysis to the unit cell that generates the whole masonry by periodic repetition. The strength of the bricks and mortar joints is represented by approximate models of weak interfaces. Moreover, an approximate technique to obtain self-equilibrated stress fields in the unit cell and the corresponding tractions at the interfaces is developed. In this way the limit strength domain for running bond, English bond and herringbone bond masonry are obtained with different orientations of the mortar bed joints with respect to the principal directions of the average stress