Shear resistance of reinforced masonry beams with and without additional concrete or prestress / Querkrafttragfähigkeiten von bewehrten Mauerwerksbalken mit und ohne Aufbeton oder Vorspannung

This article investigates the transferability of the Simplified Modified Compression Field Theory (SMCFT) [2], which is known in reinforced concrete design and included in the fib Model Code for Concrete Structures 2010 (Volume 3) [1], to reinforced or prestressed masonry beams (RM beams) with or without an additional layer of concrete. The investigation for this work is the obsolete shear design concept that has been used until now for reinforced masonry under shear loading, which does not adequately reflect the actual load-bearing behaviour of significant areas of masonry. The fundamentals of the SMCFT are explained and the transferability of the theory to RM beams is examined, taking into account in particular the different material properties of masonry compared to reinforced concrete. A first approach for future application is represented by the equations presented here for the determination of the shear force capacity of RM beams. The verification is performed through a comparison of the shear resistances determined experimentally (exp.) and by calculation (calc.).