1 ESECMASE - SHEAR TEST METHOD FOR MASONRY WALLS WITH REALISTIC BOUNDARY CONDITIONS E. FEHLING Professor of Civil Engineering Institute of Structural Engineering Chair of Structural Concrete University of Kassel Kassel, Germany D. SCHERMER Research Engineer Institute for Concrete and Masonry Structures Technische Universität München Munich, Germany SUMMARY Within the European research project ESECMaSE a shear test method for masonry walls with realistic dimensions and boundary conditions was developed and numerous wall tests were carried out using this method. The test method considers the restraint due to the floor slabs by a vertical pair of forces on top of the wall. Furthermore the load history for these tests is shown. INTRODUCTION The experimental characterisation of the behaviour of masonry wall panels under shear loading can be carried out in different ways. The investigations can take place by testing a representative small test specimen – e.g. compression test on a masonry wall panel in a specified angle to the bed joints or a diagonal compression resp. tension test – or by the application of a horizontal load on the cap of a large or full scale masonry wall panel with realistic boundary conditions both at the cap of the wall and at the wall edges. In the following, a method for the determination of the shear load bearing capacity and the deformation behaviour is described. The tests should be performed on a full scale masonry wall with load application at the top of the wall simulating the boundary conditions in real structures. BACKGROUND The behaviour of masonry wall panels under in-plane loadings, i.e. combined N-M-V-action, depends on several parameters. To investigate these effects, the execution of real tests is necessary, because a numerical simulation often largely depends on the material models and the selection of the modelling approach. Click here to search Click here for table of contents