Estimation of unreinforced tuff masonry compressive strength based on mortar and unit mechanical parameters

A substantial part of the building stock in Italy is made of unreinforced tuff masonry, which is still used for new constructions. Therefore, determining the compressive strength of this type of masonry is of fundamental importance for both the assessment of existing constructions and the design of new ones. International building codes usually suggest values for natural stone masonry in the form of formulas and/or tables. A study aimed at the estimation of the masonry compressive strength based on the components (mortar and unit) strengths is developed herein. Several building code procedures are presented together with analytical formulations available in technical literature and then a comparison against experimental data extracted from published research papers is made. Only laboratory tests inves-tigating both the components and the composite are considered, leading to the collection of information from data of nine papers. According with those data, the most reliable formulation is that provided by the Italian building code, although a significant percentage of non-conservative cases is observed.