Strengthening of the masonry bearing building stock in Albania with composite materials Merita Guri; Diana Lluka; Egla Luca

Externally bonded grids are used in this study as a means of increasing the loadcarrying and deformation capacity of the masonry bearing building stock in Albania, subjected the seismic spectrum. For the improvement of the seismic performance of this type of residential stock with load bearing masonry, we will focus on polymer materials such as TRM (Textile-reinforced mortar). Purpose of this study is to asses and to improve the seismic performance of projects type of masonry stock building chosen in Albania, which are projected in accordance with Codes [KTP-78, 1978; KTP-89, 1989, EC-8]. This assessment will be done according to instructions of ATC40 and FEMA 440, knowing nonlinear behaviour of masonry. Reinforced building with polymer materials such as TRM resulted in a better performance than that without reinforcement. Improvement was observed in two main directions, the carrying capacity and displacements form the seismic spectrum. Based on the findings of this work the use of externally bonded grids TRM comprises a promising solution for the structural upgrade of existing masonry structures in our country.