Experimental assessment of the mechanical behaviour of ties on brick veneers anchored to brick masonry infills

Masonry veneer walls have been used successfully in a wide variety of structures in modern building construction. However, their vulnerability under seismic actions is recognized as the result of poor material selection, design and construction practices. The knowledge of the local behaviour of ties under different loading conditions should provide important information to help in the selection of the most appropriate wall ties, improving seismic performance. An experimental campaign of different brick-tie-brick assemblages subjected to cyclic tension-compression loading is presented in this paper and the results (stiffness, strength, dissipation of energy and failure modes) are discussed in detail.