Finite-Element Models for Slender, Posttensioned Masonry Walls Loaded Out-of-Plane

Nonlinear finite-element models were developed, verified, and used to simulate the measured response of twelve 3.54 m (11.6 ft) tall posttensioned masonry walls with 810×100  mm (32×4  in.) cross sections that were tested to failure under uniform lateral loading in a laboratory. Variables included masonry type, wall slenderness, degree of tendon restraint, and prestress magnitude. The force-displacement relations obtained from the experimental tests of the walls were simulated using models developed by using an extended version of the program Dynamic Response Analysis of Inelastic Two-Dimensional Structures (DRAIN-2DX), and the results illustrate the influence of tensile strength, masonry type, magnitude of prestress, and tendon restraint on wall response to out-of-plane lateral loading. The computations indicate that load-displacement response of posttensioned masonry (PTM) walls is influenced by masonry tensile strength and that the stiffness and number of tendon restraints have a direct effect on peak ...