Repairing brickwork panels using titanium rods embedded in the mortar joints

This paper investigates repairing brickwork masonry walls using smooth titanium rods. Firstly, numerical analyses were carried out following a detailed micro-modelling strategy and then an experimental research program was undertaken in the laboratory. Solid clay brick specimens were initially tested, without strengthening, and subsequently re-tested, after repair, using titanium rods. Rods were embedded into the horizontal joints using an epoxy paste or a cement mortar. A double-sided repair was considered. Shear tests were carried out on four brickwork panels, under diagonal loading. The mechanism by which the diagonal shear load was carried was analyzed, varying from the uncracked state, to the final, cracked state, for both control and repaired wall panels. The results demonstrate that it is partially possible to restore the panels’ original in-plane shear capacity by embedding titanium rods into the horizontal bed joints using the epoxy paste. The experimental results were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the titanium repair, and recommendations are made to allow the test data to be used in the design procedure of cracked masonry structures. Unsatisfactory test results were recorded for panels repaired using a cement mortar.