International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) e-ISSN: 2395 -0056 Volume: 04 Issue: 04 | Apr -2017 www.irjet.net p-ISSN: 2395-0072 © 2017, IRJET | Impact Factor value: 5.181 | ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal | Page 2881 BEHAVIOUR OF MASONRY BUILDINGS UNDER SEISMIC ACTION – A REVIEW Neethu Gopal 1 , Sankaranarayanan K.M 2 , Sivan P.P 3 1 PG Student, Department of Civil Engineering, Sreepathy Institute of Management and Technology, Vavanoor, India 2 Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Sreepathy Institute of Management and Technology, Vavanoor, India 3 Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Govt.Engineering College Thrissur, India ---------------------------------------------------------------------***--------------------------------------------------------------------- Abstract - There are different types of studies carried out based on the seismicity. The structure shows different types of damage pattern for low to severe earthquake conditions. The masonry structures are commonly classified as unreinforced, reinforced and confined masonry structures. These buildings belongs to the most vulnerable class of structure have experienced heavy damage or even total collapse during earthquakes, so their analysis is a difficult task. Generally three types of failure mechanism define the behaviour of masonry structures namely, sliding shear failure, diagonal shear failure and rocking flexural failure. This paper focused on the analytical study of different masonry buildings under various seismic conditions and the mitigation practices. Key Words: Masonry buildings, analytical study, failure mechanism 1. INTRODUCTION Masonry walls are used in almost all parts of the building construction due to the low cost of materials, good sound and heat insulation properties, easy availability, and locally available materials and skilled labour. Generally, masonry is a nonelastic, non - homogeneous and anisotropic material composed of two different materials, bricks and mortar. It is very weak in tension due to the weak bond between them. To understand the significance of the properties of the materials and structural characteristics specific for masonry structures which influence for the response of masonry structures to seismic action, the observed behaviour of the masonry buildings, as well as causes of any damage that occurred to building during earthquakes, should be analyzed carefully. Most of the data needed for structural verification and design can be obtained from ground acceleration records. The analysis of seismic behaviour of masonry buildings gives the values of effective peak ground accelerations are in correlation with the induced seismic forces and observed damage to the building. The availability of masonry model for the seismic analysis of masonry structure would represent a critical step towards a proper assessment of new and existing masonry buildings. The aim of this project is to present an innovative model and safety measure of such building structures. 1.1 Masonry Structure Masonry construction is one of the oldest construction techniques that are still used in the building industry. It is mostly used for the walls of the buildings. Bricks and the concrete blocks are most common types of masonry units. The masonry structures are easy to construct and are inexpensive to maintenance. The most common masonry types includes:-  Unreinforced masonry  Confined masonry  Reinforced masonry Generally, masonry buildings are built based on tradition and experience. Masonry buildings were classified depend on the use of materials ȋadobe, stone, brick…etc.Ȍ. The structural typology of the buildings differs in different regions. The damages caused due to the earthquakes can be classified in a uniform way. The following are the typical damages identified by the analysis of observed earthquake damage pattern:  Cracks between walls and floors  Cracks at the corners and at wall intersection  Out – of plane collapse of perimetral walls  Cracks in spandrel beam or parapets  Diagonal cracks in structural walls  Partial or complete collapse of the building  Partial disintegration or collapse of structural walls