Seismic Analysis of Historical Masonry Towers with Different Support Conditions

In this paper, a series of incremental dynamic analyses were performed on five masonry towers resting on the base, whose geometry was taken from the literature, in order to determine how the difference in geometric characteristics and deformability of the subsoil affect the global behaviour, failure mechanism and seismic resistance of the towers. Special attention was attributed to determining whether masonry towers experience rocking motion mechanism during seismic excitation, which proved to be suitable in terms of seismic energy dissipation and earthquake resistance. Analyses were carried out using the planar numerical model based on the Combined Finite-Discrete Element Method (FDEM) at the macro level. The conclusions obtained on the basis of the conducted analyses can serve the researchers as guidelines to gain an insight into the expected failure mechanism of masonry towers for the assessment of their seismic resistance, as well as for making decisions about actions during their rehabilitation.