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Special Issue "Repair, Reinforcement, Conservation of Existing Building Stock: Materials, Methods and Assessment"

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Department of Mechanical & Construction Engineering, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
Interests: retrofitting buildings; sustainable construction materials; new advanced materials for upgrading of existing masonry and wood historic constructions; structural analysis and retrofitting of historic constructions; mechanics of structures and experimental analysis of existing structures
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue (SI) publishes original research articles, review articles, and short communications covering the repair, reinforcement, and conservation methods and materials of existing building stock (steel, masonry, timber, reinforced concrete, and glass structures). The SI will reflect the application possibilities of new sustainable materials and methods, advanced materials, natural fiber composites, mortars, alloys, and metals, inspiring the creation of next-generation solutions beyond conventional construction materials and traditional intervention methods and materials. We welcome reports from innovative applications and case studies and test projects. Computational and analytical manuscripts are also of interest provided they are design- or application-oriented. Reinforcement and conservation techniques and materials from interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaborations are particularly welcome. Articles with a focus on the effects of climate change, natural and man-made hazards, and combined hazards in existing building stock are invited.

Dr. Marco Corradi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

steel structures
masonry structures
timber structures
concrete structures
glass structures
earthquake engineering
natural fiber materials
composite materials
advanced materials
mortars and stonework
natural hazards
climate change
combined hazards

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

Bioconsolidation of Damaged Construction Calcarenites and Evaluation of the Improvement in Their Petrophysical and Mechanical Properties

Yolanda Spairani-Berrio

J. Antonio Huesca-Tortosa

Carlos Rodriguez-Navarro

María Teresa Gonzalez-Muñoz

and

Fadwa Jroundi

Materials 2023, 16(17), 6043; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16176043 - 02 Sep 2023

Viewed by 521

Abstract

Bioconsolidation treatment using bacterial carbonatogenesis has been proposed as an environmentally friendly strategy for the efficient preservation of damaged stones, particularly suitable for carbonate stones. The study presented here deals with the evaluation of the performance of this treatment, applied to damaged carbonate stones in two historical buildings in Spain. The methodology applied in this research serves as a reference for future similar studies. Results showed significant improvement in the petrophysical and mechanical properties of the damaged stone following the treatment through the production of calcite and vaterite by the abundant carbonatogenic bacteria inhabiting the stone. These bacteria were able to effectively consolidate weathered areas if an adequate nutritional solution was employed, thereby augmenting the stone’s resistance, as evidenced by the Drilling Resistance Measurement System (DRMS). FESEM images showed calcified bacteria and calcified exopolymeric substances (EPS) consolidating stone minerals without blocking their pores. In addition to consolidation, this biotreatment improves the stone’s behavior against water absorption and increases the contact angle of water droplets without significant modifications in the pore size or diminishing vapor permeability. No color changes are observed. Overall, these results show that the application of the nutritional solution (M-3P) for in situ consolidation of different types of porous carbonate building stones is a highly effective conservation method, with no modification of the chemical composition of the treated materials. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Repair, Reinforcement, Conservation of Existing Building Stock: Materials, Methods and Assessment)

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Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Ferrocement, Carbon, and Polypropylene Fibers for Strengthening Masonry Shear Walls

and

Materials 2023, 16(13), 4597; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16134597 - 26 Jun 2023

Viewed by 553

Abstract

This paper describes an experimental investigation into the feasibility of using ferrocement jacketing, polypropylene fibers, and carbon fiber reinforced polymer sheets (CFRP) to enhance the shear resistance of unreinforced brick masonry. The study involved testing 12 wall panels in diagonal compression, three of which were strengthened using each of the above-mentioned techniques. The results showed that all three strengthening techniques led to a significant improvement in the shear resistance and deformation capacity of the unreinforced walls. Furthermore, the results showed that the strengthened walls exhibited a significant improvement in shear resistance and deformation capacity by a factor of 3.3–4.7 and 3.7–6.8, respectively. These findings suggest that ferrocement jacketing is a viable and highly effective method for strengthening masonry structures. Test results can assist in the decision-making process to identify the most suitable design and retrofitting solution, which could indicate that not only new materials, but also traditional methods and materials (ferrocement) could be interesting and effective, also considering their lower initial cost. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Repair, Reinforcement, Conservation of Existing Building Stock: Materials, Methods and Assessment)

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Special Issue "Repair, Reinforcement, Conservation of Existing Building Stock: Materials, Methods and Assessment"

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