Shear characterization of masonry walls with polypropylene fiber reinforcement and electrowelded mesh

Abstract

In Ecuador, there is scarce information on the shear strength of walls built with locally manufactured masonry and on how to improve it using standard techniques, such as the anchorage of electrowelded mesh, versus other cheaper and easier to apply alternatives, such as the use of mortar reinforced with polypropylene fiber (PPF), applied on one or both sides. This research by collecting commonly used handmade masonry and following the guidelines of ASTM E519 evaluated the shear strengths and weight of the reinforcement alternatives, with five configurations per masonry type, finding that with unilateral FPP the stress increased 73% in brick walls and 111% in block walls, while the bilateral arrangement gave an increase of 111% and 182% respectively; welded mesh showed even greater increases with bilateral cladding; strength increased 196% in brick and 394% in block, and single-sided the benefit was 58% and 118% respectively. Although the mesh prevents collapse and significantly increases strength, it adds significant dead load. At the same time, the fibers achieve substantial gains with a much smaller weight increase, confirming that both methods are viable. The results confirm the hypothesis: Reinforcement with either welded mesh or polypropylene fibre significantly increases shear capacity. The key finding is that it is possible to double the strength of walls without doubling their weight, reducing the vulnerability of dwellings.