Civil-Comp Press, 2014

Proceedings of the Twelfth International Conference

on Computational Structures Technology,
B.H.V. Topping and P. Ivnyi, (Editors),
Civil-Comp Press, Stirlingshire, Scotland.

Paper 0123456789

The Seismic Assessment of

Historical Masonry Structures
S. Caddemi, I. Cali, F. Cannizzaro and B. Pant
Dipartimento Ingegneria Civile e Architettura
University of Catania, Italy

Abstract
The seismic assessment and subsequent rehabilitation of historical masonry
structures constitutes a contemporary issue in most seismic regions around the world
and particularly in Europe where monumental buildings represent a significant
cultural heritage which must be preserved. In most cases seismic retrofitting projects
of monumental structures have been performed without first proceeding to a reliable
assessment of the actual structural conditions. This apparent paradox is mainly due
to difficulties related the numerical prediction of the seismic behaviour of
monumental structures. Refined finite element numerical models, such as the
smeared cracked and discrete crack finite element models, able to predict the
complex non-linear dynamic mechanical behaviour and the degradation of the
masonry media, need sophisticated constitutive laws and significant computational
cost. As a consequence, these methods are nowadays unsuitable for practical
application and extremely difficult to apply to large structures. Many authors
developed simplified or alternative methodologies that, with a reduced
computational effort, should be able to provide numerical results that can be
considered sufficiently accurate for engineering practice purposes. However, most of
these methods are based on too simplified hypotheses that make these approaches
inappropriate for monumental buildings.
In this paper a new discrete-modelling approach, conceived for the seismic
assessment of a monumental structure, is applied to a benchmark historical basilica
church for which results are available in the literature. The proposed numerical
strategy represents the first introduction of the discrete-element approach able to
represent masonry structures with curved geometry and, at the same time, to
simulate both the in-plane and the out of plane response of masonry media.
Keywords: macro-element, discrete element, monumental structures, push-over
analysis.
1

Introduction

Historical Monumental Structures represent a high percentage of existing

constructions in many seismically prone areas around the world and particularly in
Europe. A large number of Historical buildings belongs to our cultural heritage and
encompass the art of building at the time of realization. However, in most cases
seismic retrofitting projects have been performed without first proceeding to a
reliable assessment of the actual structural conditions. This apparent paradox is
mainly due to difficulty related the numerical prediction of the seismic behaviour of
monumental structures. The nonlinear dynamic behaviour of URM building
subjected to earthquake loadings is governed by a complex interaction between the
in-plane and out-of-plane response of masonry. The different behaviour of masonry
structures, compared to ordinary concrete and steel buildings, requires ad hoc
algorithms capable of reproducing the nonlinear behaviour of masonry media and
providing reliable numerical simulations [1]. Refined finite element numerical
models, such as the smeared cracked and discrete crack finite element models, able
to predict the complex non-linear dynamic mechanical behaviour and the
degradation of the masonry media, require sophisticated constitutive laws and a
huge computational cost. As a consequence these methods are nowadays not suitable
for practical applications and extremely difficult to apply to large structures. On the
other hand, in order to estimate the seismic vulnerability of an existing building and
to assess whether the structure requires a seismic upgrade, a structural engineer
needs simple and efficient numerical tools, whose complexity and computational
demand must be appropriate for practical engineering purposes. For these reasons, in
the last six decades, many authors have developed simplified or alternative
methodologies for predicting the nonlinear seismic behaviour of URM building. A
common limitation of the existing simplified approaches, currently used in practical
engineering, is the basic assumption of in-plane behaviour of masonry walls making
these approaches unsuitable for monumental buildings.
In this paper, an original modelling approach for the simulation of the nonlinear
behaviour of masonry historical structures under static and seismic loadings is
considered. The proposed approach is based on the concept of macro-element
discretization [2] and has been conceived with the aim of capturing the nonlinear
behaviour of an entire building by means of an assemblage of several discreteelements which can be characterised by different level of complexity according to
the role of the element in the global model.
The basic element, initially developed for the simulation of the in-plane response,
is constituted by an articulated quadrilateral with four rigid edges and four hinged
vertices connected by two diagonal nonlinear springs; each of the rigid edges can be
connected to other elements by means of discrete distributions of nonlinear springs
with limited tension strength. This plane discrete-element has been implemented in
the computer code 3DMacro [3], and allow the simulation of masonry structures in
which the out-of-plane response can be ignored [4-7]. The basic plane-element is
intended for the simulation of the response of masonry walls in their own plane
since the out-of-plane response is not taken into account. In order to overcome this

significant restriction, common to almost all the simplified approaches, the plane
macro-element has been upgraded by introducing a third dimension and the needed
additional degrees-of-freedom, for the simulation of the out-of-plane response [8].
Nevertheless, in order to simulate the seismic response of monumental masonry
constructions, in many cases it is also necessary to model the nonlinear behaviour of
structural elements with curved geometry, such as arches, vaults, domes whose role
is fundamental both in the local and global behaviour of the structures. With the aim
to simulate the nonlinear behaviour of masonry structures with curved geometry the
macro-element has been further upgraded [9].
The computational cost of the proposed numerical approach is greatly reduced,
compared to a traditional nonlinear finite element modelling and the calibration of
the model and the interpretation of the numerical results are simple and
unambiguous, since based on a straightforward fiber discretization.
In this paper the proposed discrete element method is applied to a benchmark
historical masonry building, already investigated by Mele et al. [11]. Namely some
different sub-structural systems, typical of a Basilica plan church, have been
investigated by using the proposed discrete element method approach. The results,
expressed in terms of collapse mechanisms and push-over curves, show a
satisfactory agreement with those obtained by Mele et al. through nonlinear finite
element simulations.

The proposed macro-elements approach

The approach here adopted is based on macro-elements of different complexity

according to the corresponding role in the global model. Namely, plane, spatial and
shell macro-elements have been conceived; in the following their capability in
modelling monumental masonry buildings is briefly shown.

2.1 The plane element

The basic element of the proposed approach has a simple mechanical scheme. It is
represented by an articulated quadrilateral constituted by four rigid edges connected
by four hinges and two diagonal nonlinear springs [7]. Each side of the panel can
interact with other panels, elements or supports by means of a discrete distribution
of nonlinear springs, denoted as interface. Each interface is constituted by n
nonlinear springs, orthogonal to the panel side, and an additional longitudinal spring
which controls the relative motion in the direction of the panel edge. In spite of its
great simplicity, such a basic mechanical scheme is able to simulate the main inplane failures of a portion of masonry wall subjected to horizontal and vertical loads
[7]. Each element exhibits three degrees-of-freedom, associated to the in-plane rigidbody motion, plus a further degree-of-freedom needed to describe the in-plane
deformability. The deformations of the interfaces are associated to the relative
motion between corresponding panels, therefore no further Lagrangian parameters
must be introduced in order to describe their kinematics.
3

void
void

(a)
(b)
Figure 1: Masonry wall and corresponding macro-element discretization.
Since the proposed modelling approach is suitable for describing the behaviour of
a plane wall loaded in its own plane, a three-dimensional masonry building can be
modelled as an assemblage of plane walls. As a consequence, in this simplified
approach the behaviour of the wall in the out-of-plane direction is not considered. In
Figure 1 it is shown how a simple masonry wall can be modelled by means of the
proposed modelling approach. Namely, Figure 1b refers to a basic scheme
composed by 12 panels and is characterised by 48 degrees of freedom only.
The effectiveness of the simulation of the nonlinear behaviour relies on a suitable
choice of the mechanical parameters of the model, inferred by equivalence between
the masonry wall and a reference continuous model, characterised by simple but
reliable constitutive laws. This equivalence relies on a straightforward fiber
calibration procedure, and is based only on the main mechanical parameters which
characterise the masonry according to an orthotropic homogeneous medium [7]. It is
worth noticing that, in the proposed approach each macro-element inherits the plane
geometrical properties of the modelled masonry portion, as a consequence, contrary
to the simplified models based on equivalent frame element approach, there is no
need to define an effective dimension of the structural element.

2.2 The spatial element

The three-dimensional macro-element represents the spatial upgrade of the plane
macro-element described in the previous section. In particular, three additional
degrees-of-freedom have been considered for the description of the out-of-plane
kinematics and further nonlinear springs have been introduced in the interfaces in
order to account for the three-dimensional mechanical behaviour, Figure 2.
The kinematics of the spatial macro-element is governed by 7 degrees-of-freedom
able to describe both the rigid body motions and the in-plane deformability. Each
3D-interface possesses m rows of n longitudinal (i.e. perpendicular to the planes of
the interface) NLinks. Consequently, each of the planes of the interface discretised,
similarly to what is done in classical fiber models, in mn sub-areas (Figure 2b).
Each longitudinal spring of the 3D interface represents a strip of masonry with base
area equal to that of the sub-area which pertains to it. The fiber discretization is
selected according to the desired level of accuracy of the nonlinear response. The

3D-interface possesses also further sliding springs. These are required to control the
relative displacement of the panels perpendicular to their plane. To this purpose, two
sliding NLinks, perpendicular to the plane of the panel and contained in the plane of
the interface, have been provided (Figure 2c). These NLinks control the out-of-plane
sliding mechanisms and the torsion around the axis perpendicular to the plane of the
interface [8].

(a)

(b)

(c)

Figure 2: (a) The spatial macro-element: (b) the element with the representation of
the orthogonal NLinks for the simulation flexural behaviour; (c) the
element with the representation of the transversal and diagonal NLinks for
the simulation of shear and torsional behaviour.

2.3 The spatial element for shell modelling

The discrete element, conceived to model shell masonry structures, represents a
further upgrade of the previously described spatial element. Its core is still
constituted by a plane irregular articulated quadrilateral, however the orientation and
the dimensions of the four rigid layer edges are related to the shape and to the
thickness of the portion of curved masonry element that has to be represented,
Figure 3, as it will highlighted in the following.
n4

n1

n2

n3

(a)

(b)

Figure 3: Masonry portion and its equivalent mechanical model without the NLink
representations.
5

A diagonal spring simulates the in-plane deformability of the element in its own
medium plane (Figure 4c), while the interfaces (Figure 4b) govern the interaction
with the adjacent elements or the external supports. As mentioned before, these
interfaces are in general skew, relative to the medium plane of the element, and their
kinematics is still ruled by a discrete number of nonlinear springs which
incorporates the element properties according to an original fiber calibration
strategy. Each quadrilateral is defined by the geometric coordinates of his vertices,
the four normal vectors to the surface and the thickness in the same points (Figure
3a).

(a)
Figure 4:

(b)

(c)

(a) the shell macro-element quad. (b) the orthogonal NLinks for the
simulation of membrane and flexural behaviour; (c) transversal and
diagonal NLinks for the simulation of in-plane and torsional behaviour

The kinematics of the spatial macro-element is still governed by 7 degrees-offreedom only for the description of both the rigid body motions and the in-plane
shear deformability.
2.2.1 Notes on calibration procedures
The calibration procedure is based on the assumption that the behaviour of a
continuously curved surface can be adequately represented by flat elements,
Figure 5. In the sub-division of an arbitrary shell into flat elements generally both
triangular and quadrilateral elements should be used. For the sake of conciseness,
here only the quadrilateral shape element is described in more detail. Each element
must be representative of the corresponding finite portion of the shell cut out by
plane sections which are located at the edges of the irregular quadrilateral and whose
orientations and thicknesses are associated to the actual represented shell.
The membrane and the bending behaviour of the element is governed by the
nonlinear links orthogonal to the rigid layer edges, while three additional transversal
links control both the in-plane and out-of plane sliding shear and the twisting of two
adjacent layers. A single diagonal nonlinear link governs the in-plane nonlinear
shear behaviour of the quadrilateral element. The orthogonal NLinks that govern the
membrane and flexural response are calibrated by means of a fiber modeling

approach. The calibration procedures of each nonlinear link are based on the
mechanical characterization of masonry and the geometric properties of the
elements. Masonry, considered as a continuous homogeneous solid, can be modelled
considering different constitutive laws for each fundamental behaviour: membrane,
bending, shear, sliding, and torque.

(a)

(b)

Figure 5: (a) Quadrilateral portion of masonry structures; (b) Flat element

representation.

(a)

(b)
Figure 6: Representation of the generic fiber corresponding to two opposite Nlinks.
7

The discrete model has been conceived as a fiber, and each element of the
mechanical scheme simulates the behavior of a corresponding strip. Each orthogonal
link is calibrated in order to be equivalent to the corresponding portion of masonry
which represents, according to the pertinent volume, Fig. 6a. Similar to the
procedure adopted for the plane element [7], the calibration process consists of two
phases. In the first phase the mechanical properties of two links, which correspond
to the fibers of each of the two elements connected by the interface, are calculated.
In the second phase the two links in series will be condensed in a single equivalent
nonlinear link. Each of the two links can be calibrated considering a nonlinear
elastic-plastic beam with a variable section, Fig. 6b. The transversal links govern the
in-plane and the out-of-plane sliding of the shell element according to a MohrCoulomb law. In the elastic range the diagonal link is calibrated by imposing an
energy equivalence with a continuous reference elastic model represented by a
deformable plate with variable thickness subjected to the same displacement field of
the discrete element. The current yielding forces are associated to the reaching of the
limits of tensile or compressive stresses in the reference continuous model. Further
details on the calibration approach can be found in [9].

Numerical application

The assessment of seismic behaviour of historical monumental structure still

represents a challenging problem which involves the contribution of many research
groups around the world. Due to the difficulties to define three dimensional global
nonlinear finite element models many researchers proposed alternative and
simplified procedures for the assessment of the seismic vulnerability of a
monumental structures. An interesting approach is that proposed by Mele et al.
[10,11] which is based in a two steps analysis method. In the first step the overall
structure is analysed in the linear range through a complete and refined 3D model,
with the aim of characterising the linear static and dynamic behaviour, defining the
corresponding internal force distribution among the single elementary parts and
identifying the weak points of potential failure in the building. Secondly single
structural elements are extracted from the 3D context and analysed in the linear and
nonlinear range through refined 2D models, with the aim of defining the major
structural properties which can be used for a simplified assessment of the seismic
behaviour of the whole building. Consistently to this approach Mele et al. [11]
investigated the seismic behaviour of a basilica type church, the S. Ippolisto Martire
Church, located in Atripalda (Avellino, Italy), built between 1584 and 1612 on a
previous basilica of the IV century AD. As highlighted by the authors in the same
paper [11].This church features the presence of very definite structural typologies
formed by the assemblage of quite repetitive structural schemes, that in the
referenced paper have been called macro-elements. In the following this structural
schemes will be identified as sub-structural systems since in the previous
paragraph, and in many papers in the literature, the term macro-element has been
used at a different scale.
The basilica church consists of some structural elements, typical in this building
category: nave and aisles connected by nave arcades, facade, transept, crossing and
8

chancel. The detailed nonlinear analysis of each sub-structural system can provide
fundamental information on the global seismic behaviour of the structure, at the
same time allows an identification of the more vulnerable resistant mechanisms
which contribute to the seismic performance of a specific monumental structure.
In their study [11] Mele et al. firstly identified the main sub-structural systems
which characterise the considered basilica plan church then performed nonlinear
push-over analysis of all the sub-structural systems with the aim to provide a seismic
vulnerability assessment. In order to obtain a numerical validation of the nonlinear
static analyses they compared the results of the push-over analyses to the ultimate
loads derived from limit analysis.

T5
T2

T3

T4

T4

T4

T4
L2

L2

Plan of the church

Figure 7: Schematic view of the considered plan church.

In this paper, with the aim to proceed to a first validation of the proposed discrete
element approach, some of the results obtained Mele et al on some sub-structural
system, are compared with those obtained by using the proposed discrete element
method approach, that has been implement in a structural code, HiStrA (Historical
Structure Analysis), devoted the seismic assessment of monumental structures.
Although the objective of the proposed approach is to provide full 3D nonlinear
structures in this context the performed analyses will be limited to the nonlinear
simulations of sub-structural systems.
The detailed description of the case study, both from a mechanical and
geometrical point of views, is reported in the referenced paper [11]. In Figure 8 the
geometrical layouts of the investigated sub-structural systems and the corresponding
meshes, adopted for the discrete element simulations, are reported. Consistently to
the nomenclature already adopted by Mele et al., the sub-structural systems have
been identified by the labels L2, T2, T3, T4, T5, in which the capital letters L and T
identify the Longitudinal and Transversal directions respectively.

1300

475

475

300

Element T2
quad elements
rigid elements
DOFs
5507 KN

475

Element T3
396
18
2880
W
1495

quad elements
rigid elements
DOFs
4461 KN

605

1060

1435

1495

890

440
22
3212
W

1300

300

475

755

745

755

365

390

745

390

365

340

Element T5
Element T4
quad elements
rigid elements
DOFs
2028 KN

660

795

196
12
1444
W

486
3402
W

quad elements
rigid elements
DOFs
5574 KN

515

1135

125 310
375

810

1000

185

325

420

305

240

895

170

785

325

550

295

970

605

550

435

190

550

600

325

550

335

600

190

170

130

60

115

960

735

quad elements
rigid elements
DOFs
8768 KN

275

747
38
5457
W

560

775

1060

1420

265

265

440

Element L2

170

430

120

430

120

430

120

430

120

430

120

Figure 8: The considered sub-structural systems: Geometrical layouts and mesh

discretization adopted in the discrete element simulations.

10

T2

T3

T4

T5

Figure 9: Failure mechanisms corresponding to nonlinear static analyses associated

to horizontal in-plane mass-proportional load distributions for the
transversal sub-structural systems.

11

The plan position of the sub-structural systems is represented in the schematic

plan view of Figure 7.
The applications here reported are relative to push-over analyses associated to the
application of constant vertical loads, deriving from their own weight, and
increasing horizontal in-plane mass-proportional loadings. The mechanical
characteristics of the structural elements and their geometry have been derived by
the data reported in the referenced paper [11]. In the performed analyses it has been
assumed that each single structural-element is free from the remaining part of the
structure, the role of each sub-structural in the global behaviour the church is at the
moment a work in progress.
E
Young
Modulus
[MPa]

G
Shear
Modulus
[MPa]

c
Compressive
strength
[MPa]

t
Tensile
strength
[KN/cm2]

o
Shear
strength
[MPa]

Friction
angle

W
Unit
weigth
[KN/m3]

1500

650

0.1/0.2/0.3

0.4

19

Table 1: Mechanical parameters assumed for the considered sub-structural systems

In the applications reported in the following an elastic-perfectly plastic behaviour
has been assumed for the nonlinear links. Since the lateral resistance of each substructural system is strictly dependent on the limit value assumed for the mechanical
characteristics of both the limit tensile and shear strength. A sensitivity analysis has
been performed, namely three different values of the limit tensile strength have been
considered and the shear strength has been described according to a Mohr-Coulomb
criteria in the cohesion o has been set equal to the tensile limit. The adopted
mechanical parameters are reported in table 1, furthermore unlimited ductility has
been assumed for all the Nlinks. The implementation of more realistic constitutive
laws, which account for cyclic behaviour, stiffness and strength reduction and
limited ductility, will allow a better simulation of the actual behaviour of both the
sub-structural systems and the entire church. The numerical predictions here
reported aim at evaluating the suitability of the proposed discrete element approach
to be used as a further numerical tool for the seismic assessment of historical
monumental structures.
In Figures 9 the failure mechanisms relative to the considered transversal
structural element, corresponding to the value of the tensile limit t=0.2, are
reported. In the same figure the relative distribution of stresses in the interfaces are
represented by means of a chromatic scale in which the red and the blue colours
correspond to tensile and compressive forces respectively.
Figure 9a refers to the transversal section of the triumphal arch, identified as T2.
The sub-structural systems T3 and T4 constitute internal transversal elements while
T5 identifies the facade. The collapse mechanism are in very good agreement with
the damage scenario often observed during seismic events in many basilica churches
and are close to the results of the nonlinear finite element numerical prediction
provided by Mele et al. [11].

12

Figure 10: Failure mechanisms corresponding to nonlinear static analyses

associated to horizontal in-plane mass-proportional load distributions for
the longitudinal sub-structural system.
The structural element L2 corresponds to the section of the church along the nave
arcade and represents a typical solution, given by the assemblage of columns
supporting arches and vaults.
0,6

0,4

t=0,20 Mpa

0,3
0,2

t=0,10 Mpa

T2

0,1

t=0,20 Mpa

0,2
0,15

t=0,10 Mpa

0,1

T3

0,05
0

0
0

10

20
30
40
Top displacement [mm]

50

0,3

10

20
30
40
50
Top displacement [mm]

0,8

t=0,30 Mpa

0,25

0,6

t=0,20 Mpa

0,2
0,15

t=0,10 Mpa

0,1

t=0,20 Mpa

0,5
0,4

t=0,10 Mpa

0,3
0,2

T4

0,05

T5

0,1

60

t=0,30 Mpa

0,7
Cb = Vb / W

Cb = Vb / W

t=0,30 Mpa

0,25

Cb = Vb / W

Cb = Vb / W

0,3

t=0,30 Mpa

0,5

10

20 30 40 50 60 70
Top displacement [mm]

80

90

10

20
30
40
Top displacement [mm]

50

Figure 12: Transversal sub-structural systems: nonlinear force displacement curves

for different values of the tensile limit strength.

13

In the discrete element simulation a full 3D discretization has been considered,

characterised by 737 quadrangular (shear deformable) elements and 38 triangular
(rigid) elements. The discrete elements simulation is governed by 5457 degrees of
freedom which can account for both the in-plane and the out of plane behaviour of
the sub-structural system.
The failure mechanism is reported in figure 10, it can be observed a separation
between the end wall on the left side and the sequence of arches on the right. This
behaviour is due to the different lateral resistance of the two parts and to the law
tensile resistance.
The results of the push-over analyses relative to the transversal sub-structural
systems are reported in Figure 12 for three different values of the tensile strength. It
can be observed the great influence of the value of the ultimate tensile strength on
the ultimate load of the considered sub-structural systems. In figure 13 a comparison
of the lateral resistance capacities of the considered transversal sub-structural
systems is reported, for the value of the tensile strength t=0.2. The figure allows to
identify how each structural scheme appears to be characterised by strong
differences in terms of stiffness, ultimate loads displacement capacity.

3500

0,6

T5
T2

2500
2000
1500

T5

0,5

Cb = Vb / W

Base shear [kN]

3000

T3

1000

T4

500

T2

0,4
0,3

T3

0,2

T4

0,1

10

20

30 40 50 60 70 80
Top displacement [mm]

90 100

10

20

30 40 50 60 70 80
Top displacement [mm]

90 100

Figure 13: Transversal sub-structural systems: nonlinear force displacement curves

for different values of the tensile limit strength.

Figure 14 reports the results of the push-over analysis for the L2 sub-structural
system, for three different values of the tensile strength. The horizontal force
resultant is plotted vs. the displacements of three different target nodes P1, P2 and
P3, whose positions are displayed in Figure 10. The target point P1 shows different
displacement capacity of the target point P2 and P3 that are characterised by a
similar response. This behaviour is better represented in Figure 14d in which a
comparison for the curves corresponding to different target points, for the value of
t=0.2 MPa, is reported. Also in this case the tensile strength has a great influence
in the ultimate load capacity

14

0.3
0.25
0.2
0.15

t=0,30 Mpa

0.1

P1

0.05

t=0,20 Mpa

0.2
0.15

t=0,10 Mpa

0.1
0.05

P2

0
0

10

20
30
40
Top displacement [mm]

50

0.3

10

20
30
40
Top displacement [mm]

50

0.3
t=0,30 Mpa

0.25

0.25
t=0,20 Mpa

0.2

Cb = Vb / W

Cb = Vb / W

t=0,30 Mpa

0.25

t=0,20 Mpa

Cb = Vb / W

Cb = Vb / W

0.3

t=0,30 Mpa

0.15
t=0,10 Mpa

0.1
0.05

0.2
0.15
P1

0.1

P2

0.05

P3

t=0.2 MPa

P3

0
0

10

20
30
40
Top displacement [mm]

50

10

20
30
40
Top displacement [mm]

50

Figure 14: Longitudinal sub-structural systems: nonlinear force displacement

curves for different values of the tensile limit strength and for three
different target points.

Conclusions

In this paper an original modelling approach for the simulation of the nonlinear
behaviour of monumental masonry buildings under static and seismic loadings is
considered. The proposed approach is based on the concept of discrete-element
discretization and has been conceived with the aim of capturing the nonlinear
behaviour of a macro-portion of a masonry element and of an entire structure, by
means of an assemblage of several discrete-elements. Each discrete-element can be
characterised by different level of complexity according to the role of the element in
the global model. With the aim to provide a first numerical validation the method
has been applied to a benchmark historical masonry building for which results are
available in the scientific literature. Namely some sub-structural systems of a typical
basilica plan church have been analysed by means of nonlinear static analyses.
The macro-elements introduced so far, enriches a larger computational framework,
based on macro-element approach, devoted to the numerical simulation of the
seismic behaviour of historical masonry structures.

15

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