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This research is focused on the experimental characterisation of the compressive behaviour of masonry in existing buildings. The proposed technique is based on in situ core drilling of masonry members. Two walls were built making use of terracotta handmade bricks and lime mortar, without cement, to reproduce a low-strength historical masonry. Core samples were extracted from the walls and then regularized to perform a non-standard compression test in the laboratory. Stack-bonded prisms were also tested under compression. A direct comparison is made between the results from the proposed non-standard tests on core samples and the tests suggested by the available standards on prismatic samples. The proposed minor destructive technique shows to be effective for the mechanical characterisation of existing masonry structures, including historical ones.

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis Group in International Journal of Architectural Heritage: Conservation, Analysis, and Restoration on 2016, available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/15583058.2015.1077906 This paper presents an experimental study aimed at the characterization of the mechanical behaviour of existing masonry. The research proposes a methodology based on the in-situ core drilling of existing masonry members, made of clay brick and low-strength lime mortar. The obtained cylindrical samples, with different diameters, are tested in the laboratory to derive the compression and frictional response of the composite material and the components (units, mortar). The paper addresses the main issues related to the extraction of cylindrical specimens, the testing and the interpretation of results. The proposed minor destructive technique is suitable for existing masonry structures and especially for those of the built cultural heritage, since a direct estimation of the mechanical parameters can be obtained without damaging excessively the historical structure.