Buckling of Blockhaus walls under in-plane vertical loads

Blockhaus systems represent a traditional construction technology, whose strength directly depends on the contact and interaction between timber logs and carpentry connections. Due to the complexity of the phenomena involved in their typical load-carrying behavior (loading perpendicular to the grain, effect of friction, influence of gaps in the joints, creep, etc.), their structural behavior under specific loading/boundary conditions is not completely known. In the paper, the buckling failure of Blockhaus walls under in-plane vertical loads is deeply investigated. Based on sophisticated numerical models, linear modal analyses and nonlinear static incremental simulations are performed to predict their critical buckling load. A detailed parametric study is performed to highlight the effects of openings and load eccentricities. Numerical results are then compared to predictions of analytical models available in literature and results of full-scale buckling experiments.