A joint fatigue–creep deterioration model for masonry with acoustic emission based damage assessment

• Development of SN and ST type failure prediction models for fatigue and creep in masonry, based on experimental results.
• Characterisation of stages of the damage accumulation process with acoustic emission techniques.
• A joint deterioration model for fatigue and creep in masonry.

The paper investigates the long-term fatigue and creep deterioration processes in historical brick masonry. Based on two independent laboratory test series, the relationship between stress level and life expectancy was considered for fatigue and creep loading in the form of SN type models. The process of deterioration was investigated with the help of acoustic emission technique to identify stages and characteristics of the damage accumulation process. Based on the test data and acoustic emission results, a joint SN type deterioration model was proposed to incorporate the static, fatigue and creep deterioration mechanisms. A mathematical relationship was proposed for the joint fatigue–creep model and good agreement was found between the test data and the proposed model.