2nd year of Degree in Foundations of Architecture
6 ECTS – Elective course
Description
The construction of masonry, along with wood, has been dominant in building and civil engineering until the 19th century. An important part of the historical heritage has been constructed with these two materials. Throughout the 19th century, iron, steel, and reinforced concrete began to displace both traditional materials, which today play a secondary role in new construction. The theories and calculation tools taught today in Schools of Architecture and Engineering refer to the new materials: steel and reinforced concrete, and in the case of building, they refer to structures composed of bars, either forming triangulated frameworks or portals. This theory is inapplicable to a material like masonry, which is made up of a material that is essentially discontinuous, heterogeneous, and anisotropic, and which, moreover, only withstands compression (unilateral material).
Professor Heyman has developed the modern theory of masonry by translating the principles of limit analysis to this structural type. For a “standard” material, the Fundamental Theorems of Limit Analysis are verified. Crucially, the Safety Theorem leads to the “equilibrium approach” (Heyman): that is, we can perform safe analyses using only the equations of equilibrium and the masonry material. It is not necessary to make assertions about the boundary conditions, which are essentially ephemeral and unknowable. Professor Heyman has published a series of books and articles that cover not only the theoretical framework but also the main cases of application: arches, domes, buttresses, ribbed vaults, spires, and towers. This material has been translated and published in Spanish by the Juan de Herrera Institute and will serve as the basis for the course.
It is not possible to conduct a correct analysis with an incorrect or inadequate theory. Those who wish to work in the field of intervention in Historical Heritage must learn the new theory of masonry structures. The primary objective of this course is to acquire a thorough understanding of the Theory of Masonry Structures that allows for an understanding of its functioning and any problems that may arise. The main phase is the analysis; if the analysis is correct, the consolidation measures emerge almost immediately.
Course content
- Introduction. History.
- The factory. The material. Equilibrium of arches. Lines of thrust.
- Cracking and collapse of arches. Fundamental theorems. Geometric safety coefficient.
- Analysis of arches. Tools. Graphical methods of equilibrium.
- Analysis of buttresses. Safety. Fracture of buttresses.
- Masonry domes. Stability analysis. The dome of St. Peter’s in Rome.
- Thin domes. Membrane state. Ribbed domes.
- The Gothic structure. The ribbed vault. The flying buttress and the exterior buttress.
- Building analysis. The block method. Anatomy of a cathedral: Palma de Mallorca.
- Towers, spires, and pinnacles.
- Miscellaneous: Rose windows, staircases, flat vaults.
- Conclusion. Safe equilibrium. Geometry and stability.
Teaching planning (subject table, academic calendar, and exam schedule…)
Course coordinator
Prof. Santiago Huerta Fernández
Academic board
President: Prof. Santiago Huerta Fernández
Secretary: Prof. César de Santos Berbel
Member: Prof. Antonio Á. Aznar López