Numerical evaluation of the seismic efficiency of connections of fractures and complements of ancient colonnades

Abstract

As a common practice, restoration projects of ancient colonnades have to deal with joining together fragments of architectural members using threaded titanium bars (reinforcement) fixed into place with cement mortar. The basic criterion for the design of such connections is that, in case of a seismic event, the reinforcement should absorb the seismic energy and fail before the marble suffers any damage. For the dimensioning of these connections, the capacity design concept is usually implemented. In this chapter, the efficiency of the reinforcement of the connection calculated with this methodology is investigated for selected severe seismic excitations. The analyses were performed for two case studies with different geometries: a column of the Parthenon Pronaos and the Southern colonnade of the Ancient Agora of Kos in Greece. The induced forces were calculated using the distinct element method. The results show that the design is adequate, as the stresses induced to the reinforcement bars were always less than their ultimate strength and, in many cases, considerably less than their yield resistance as well.