PSI - Issue 80

Riccardo Giacometti et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 80 (2026) 219–231 R. Giacometti, N. Grillanda, V. Mallardo / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2023) 000–000

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Fig. 7: Numerical results with fixed foundation. Classical approach.

Fig. 9 provides the results with soil and the inclusion of a cavity under the central pier. The influence of the soil on the mechanical response of the bridge is amplified. The di ff erential settlement increases to 1 . 8cm. The cavity may be the simplest way to simulate the scouring due to river flow. More advanced modelling strategies are under progress, for instance by introducing inclusions with di ff erent mechanical properties and / or by applying a negative pressure to simulate the scouring of material.

Fig. 8: Numerical results including the soil. Present approach.

Fig. 9: Numerical results including the soil and with a cavity under the central pier. Present approach.

4. Conclusions and future work

Some novel 3D approaches regarding the prediction of the crack frameworks in historical masonry structures have been presented. Two are the main issues that have been dealt with: the seismic action and the soil structure interaction. Concerning the former, a non linear limit analysis model has been presented. Some mesh issues and homogenization strategies have also been dealt with. A numerical example has been shown to demonstrate its e ffi ciency in predicting the collapse of masonry walls under earthquake. Furthermore, a new approach has been proposed to include the presence of the soil in the mechanical response of the structure under static loads. The typical unilateral friction properties of the masonry has been included. The numerical result has shown its novelty in predicting the di ff erential settlements of masonry structures under static loads. Future works will be focusing on predicting more complex 3D collapse mechanisms.