Shake-Table Tests on a URM Building with Chimneys

The paper presents the results of a shake-table test performed on a full-scale unreinforced clay-masonry building with chimneys. The tests were part of a wider experimental campaign aimed at assessing the seismic vulnerability of buildings in an area prone to induced seismicity. The prototype building embodied construction details characteristic of old detached single-story houses of the Groningen province in The Netherlands, without any specific seismic detailing. The house featured a typical Dutch gambrel roof that allowed for living space above the attic floor, with high gables that were vulnerable to out-of-plane excitation. The floor was made of timber joists and planks, resulting in a flexible diaphragm. Two clay-brick chimneys were included to investigate the performance of falling non-structural masonry elements in earthquakes. A unidirectional, incremental dynamic test was carried out up to collapse conditions of the building, using input ground motions compatible with induced seismicity scenarios for the Groningen gas field. Structural and non-structural damage were surveyed in detail at the end of every earthquake simulation. Low-intensity random vibration tests were additionally performed to assess the effect of the cumulative damage on the dynamic properties of the structure. The paper summarizes the main characteristics of the specimen and part of the shake-table test results, focusing on the seismic response of the two chimneys.