Confinement of masonry columns with PBO and basalt FRCM composites

A new generation of composite materials in form of Fiber Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM) was recently used to strengthen the masonry structures. Six small scale masonry columns were tested under monotonic concentric load until collapse; three columns were confined with PBO (short of polyparafenilenbenzobisoxazole)-FRCM jackets, two with basalt–FRCM jackets while an unconfined column was used as a control specimen. The masonry columns investigated have a rectangular cross section 250x250 mm among the overall length equal to 770 mm, and the corners were rounded to a radius of 20 mm. The analysis was conducted varying the confinement ratio i.e. the number of fabric layers for each FRCM system. Obtained results allow to evidence the effectiveness of the confinement and the effect n-layer on the structural response of the masonry columns.