PSI - Issue 78

Giuseppe Brandonisio et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 78 (2026) 2162–2168

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d’Armi—was located. After World War II, a sports field was built on its northern section. To the east, a 2-hectare rear area was developed with several sheds built as extensions of the original barracks, used to shelter and serve the horses assigned to the regiment stationed there. Today, all structures within the complex are vacant, unused, and in a severe state of degradation, abandonment, and disrepair. 2.2. Description of the case study T he building has a rectangular layout (157 m × 125 m), enclosing an open rectangular courtyard, with the longer sides oriented orthogonally to the main square in front. At each of its four corners, the structure is defined by tower like volumes known as bastions, which contain both interior spaces and stairwells that provide vertical circulation across the levels, supplementing those located in the front (south) and rear (north) wings. All wings consist of three above-ground floors. On the ground floor, the portions facing the central courtyard are characterised by a portico defined by a rhythmically consistent sequence of semicircular arches, which continue through and intersect within the four corner towers (Fig. 2). The two upper floors replicate the exact geometric footprint of the ground floor, echoing the portico’s rhythm through a series of regularly aligned window openings. The roof system consists of double pitched roofs aligned along the longitudinal axis of each wing, orthogonal to both the inner and outer façades, with transitional roof connections at the four corner towers.

For this study, the whole building is divided into the following eight portions (Fig. 2): Body A (southern wing of the building); Block B (east wing of the building, overlooking the barracks); Body C (northern wing of the building); Body D (West wing of the building, overlooking the square); Block 1 (connection bastion between Body A and Body D); Block 2 (connection bastion between Body A and Body B); Block 3 (connection bastion between Body B and C). According to the classification proposed by Pagano (1968), the building under investigation is a typical first-class structure, consisting entirely of masonry elements. The overall layout of the complex is structurally robust due to several key factors. The floor plan is highly regular, with a long-to-short side ratio of 1.25 and a maximum dimension along the longer side of approximately 157 m; the plan is closed in form, encompassing a large internal courtyard measuring 108 m; symmetry is maintained along both of the building’s principal axes; the layout exhibits near-perfect regularity, with solid walls aligned above solids and openings above openings; openings are sufficiently distant from wall intersections; transverse masonry walls are distributed regularly, generally spaced no more than 7 meters apart, except in the case of large halls on the second floor; the structure is rather squat: despite a maximum length of about 157 meters, it rises only three storeys, with a total height of approximately 18 meters. Fig. 2 Identification of local structural units