Buckling of masonry walls - A new proposal for the Eurocode 6 / Knicken von Mauerwerk - Ein neuer Bemessungsvorschlag für den Eurocode 6

The buckling of masonry wall depends on the deformation behaviour and can be described with the modulus of elasticity depending on masonry strength. The reduction factor solution considering buckling is described by the Gaussian bell-shaped curve in Eurocode 6, Part 1-1 Annex G and was calibrated for masonry with a modulus of elasticity between 700 and 1000 fk, which describes the masonry currently used in most European countries. In case of historic masonry or where deformability is needed in new construction, the modulus of elasticity can actually be lower. In those cases the approximation procedure according to Annex G of the Eurocode 6 delivers results which do not represent the real behaviour and leads to uneconomical results. The present paper proposes a new empirical method, which can be applied over the whole practical range of the elastic modulus of masonry. The new proposed method has been verified with experimental data and shows a very good fit.