Trans. Tianjin Univ.

2013, 19: 419-424

DOI 10.1007/s12209-013-2121-6

Experimental Study on Improving Seismic Behavior

of Load-Bearing Masonry Wall
Made of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete*
Yu Jinghai (于敬海)1，Cao Jianfeng (曹建锋)2，Fei Tianhui (费添慧)1
(1. Architectural Design and Research Institute of Tianjin University, Tianjin 300073, China;
2. School of Civil Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072,China)

© Tianjin University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013

Abstract ： To investigate the seismic behavior of autoclaved aerated concrete load-bearing masonry wall
(AACLMW), a piece of control block wall without constructional measures and five pieces of block walls with dif-
ferent constructional measures were tested under low reversed cyclic loading which imitated low to moderate earth-
quake force. The seismic behavior of AACLMW with different constructional measures in terms of failure mode, hys-
teretic curve, deformation capacity and displacement ductility was studied and compared with that without construc-
tional measures. The experimental results indicate that the constructional measures comprising constructional columns
and horizontal concrete strips are effective for improving the seismic behavior of AACLMW. The study in this paper
can provide a reliable experimental basis for further analysis and engineering application of AACLMW in the future.
Keywords：autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC); load-bearing masonry wall (LMW); seismic behavior; construc-
tional column; concrete strip

Compared with clay solid bricks and concrete hol-
low blocks, autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) blocks
are easier to process, and they have smaller volume den-
sity, higher specific strength, smaller coefficient of ther-
mal conductivity. Although the strength of the AAC
block is low, the dimension of the block is large and the
homogeneity of the block is good. Therefore, the ma-
sonry can make full use of the strength of the AAC block.
In the multi-story residential building, the AAC load-
bearing masonry block can greatly reduce the weight of
building and improve the seismic behavior and heat pres-
ervation performance of the wall[1,2]. Therefore, the stud-
ies on the combination of good physical properties of
AAC with its bearing capacity and the application of
AAC to the bearing structure, especially multi-story ma-
sonry structure, are of great significance. However, little
experimental research has been done to improve the
seismic behavior of autoclaved aerated concrete load-
bearing masonry wall (AACLMW) with the construc-
tional measures comprising the constructional columns
and the concrete horizontal strips[3-6]. In this study, ex-
periments were conducted to investigate the seismic be-
havior of AACLMW with constructional measures.
1 Experimental program
1.1 Design of specimens
A total of six specimens were designed. One piece
of wall was used as the control specimen and the other
five pieces of walls were reinforced with the construc-
tional columns and horizontal strips. The materials used
for the specimens comprised lime sand and aerated con-
crete block. The standard dimension of the block was
630 mm  250 mm  250 mm. The specimens consisted of
the cutting block whose dimension was 1/2 of the origi-
nal standard dimension and special mortar. The construc-
tional columns of all specimens had the same cross-
section of 125 mm  150 mm. The constructional col-
umns had 12 mm diameter longitudinal reinforcements
and 6 mm diameter hoop reinforcements of Grade
HPB235 spaced at 200 mm center to center. The cross-
section dimensions of the horizontal strips had two types,
which were 125 mm  60 mm and 125 mm  125 mm,
respectively. The 6 mm longitudinal reinforcements were

Accepted date: 2013-07-25.

*Supported by Science and Technology Development Program of Tianjin (No. 033112311)．
Yu Jinghai, born in 1965, male, Dr, Prof.
Correspondence to Yu Jinghai, E-mail: YJH300072@163.com.
 Transactions of Tianjin University Vol.19 No.6 2013

used in the horizontal strips. The concrete was designed
with the grade of compressive strength of C20. Fig.1
shows the dimensions of the specimens and arrangements
of the constructional columns and horizontal strips. The
dimension of ZG-4 is similar to ZG-3 except that the
height of the horizontal strip is 125 mm. The measured
values of mechanical properties of the materials are listed
in Tab.1. The basic parameters of the specimens are listed
in Tab.2.

(a) ZG-1 (b) ZG-2

(c) ZG-3 (d) ZG-5

Fig.1 Dimensions of specimens and arrangements of constructional columns and horizontal strips(unit: mm)

Tab.1 Mechanical properties of block, mortar, concrete and reinforcement

Block compressive strength/ Mortar cube compressive strength/ Concrete cube compressive strength/ Reinforcement yield strength/
(N·mm 2) (N·mm 2) (N·mm 2) (N·mm 2)
- - - -

3.42 14.8 24.1 274.8

Tab.2 Basic parameters of specimens

Specimen Depth-width ratio Vertical stress σ0 / MPa Actual dimension H×B /(mm×mm) Constructional measures
Control wall (without constructional reinforced
ZS-1 0.52 0.7 1 152×2 223
measures)
ZG-1 0.52 0.7 1 152×2 205 Two side constructional columns
ZG-2 0.52 0.7 1 152×2 205 Two side and a middle constructional columns
Two side constructional columns and a 60 mm high
ZG-3 0.52 0.7 1 152×2 205
horizontal strip
Two side constructional columns and a 125 mm high
ZG-4 0.52 0.7 1 152×2 205
horizontal strip
Two side constructional columns and two 125 mm
ZG-5 0.52 0.7 1 152×2 205
high horizontal strips

1.2 Experimental setup comprises a vertical loading system to apply the vertical
The experimental setup consists of a parallel four- load and a lateral loading system to apply the cyclic lat-
bar mechanism with L-shaped loading beam and a verti- eral load. The schematic diagram of the experimental
cal loading device to imitate gravity. The loading device setup is shown in Fig.2.

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 Yu Jinghai et al: Experimental Study on Improving Seismic Behavior of Load-Bearing Masonry Wall Made of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete
1—Base；2—Four-bar mechanism；3—L-shaped rigid beam；
4—Specimen；5—Lateral displacement sensor；6—Roller；
7—Steel plate；8—Hydraulic jack；9—Pressure sensor；
10—Vertical loading frame；11—Tension-pressure sensor；
12—Tension-pressure jack；13—Reaction wall.
Fig.2 Schematic diagram of experimental setup
1.3 Loading procedure
The vertical load was applied up to the design level
and was kept constant during the experiment. The loading
procedure was controlled by load before the cracking of
the specimen and by displacement after the cracking of
the specimen. The lateral load applied in the first level
was 20% of the expected ultimate load, and then the lat-
eral load increased by 10% of the expected ultimate load
until the specimen cracked. After the specimen cracked, a
number of cycles were taken to the lateral cracking dis-
placement levels of  c , 2  c , 3  c , 4  c , etc[7,8]. The
loading was repeated only once at each control point be-
fore the specimen cracked and repeated twice at each
control point to obtain the degraded curves of restoring
force after the specimen cracked. The loading procedure
is shown in Fig.3.
Fig.3 Loading procedure
2 Experimental results and discussion
2.1 Experimental phenomena and damage charac-
teristics
When the lateral load was small, the load-
displacement curves of the specimens are basically linear
and there were no residual deformations after unloading
to zero.
When the lateral load reached about 50% of the ul-
timate load, a few small vertical cracks were found in the
central part of ZS-1. As the lateral load further increased
to about 70% of the ultimate load, stepped cracks ap-
peared in the middle part of the upper wall at 45o along
the mortar joint, which was accompanied with a silvery
“clap” sound. Meanwhile, a turning point appeared in the
hysteretic curve and the residual deformation began to
increase after unloading to zero. Finally, the specimen
turned into the elastic-plastic deformation stage. After the
lateral load reached the ultimate load, the load-
displacement curve of the specimen entered into slow
descending branch. As the lateral load dropped to 85% of
the ultimate load, parts of the AAC blocks in the middle
and bottom parts of the specimen were crushed and fell
off from the specimen.
As the lateral load increased to 40%—50% of the ul-
timate load, diagonal cracks appeared in the central parts
of ZG-1 and ZG-2 at 45o and the crack width was about
0.1 mm. Meanwhile, a silvery “clap” sound was heard as
the block cracked. When the lateral load reached the ul-
timate load, there were obvious horizontal relative dis-
placements in each layer of the blocks with “rustle”
sounds. Vertical cracks which were nearly connected
from top to bottom appeared at the joint of the masonry
block and the constructional column. Some masonry
blocks obviously plumped up and small parts of the
blocks fell off. When the lateral load dropped to 85% of
the ultimate load, horizontal cracks were found in the
contact position of the lower beam and constructional
columns on both sides. Meanwhile, the blocks locally fell
off from the wall.
When the lateral load reached 70%—80% of the ul-
timate load, stepped cracks appeared in the central part of
ZG-3 at 45o along the mortar joint. The cracks extended
to the edge of the horizontal strip. Meanwhile, a silvery
“clap” sound was heard as the block cracked. With the
increase of the lateral load, the lateral displacement of the
wall gradually increased. The horizontal cracks appeared
in the concrete at the side of the constructional column
and the cracks of masonry began to enter into the hori-
zontal strip. As the load reached the ultimate load, obvi-
ous relative movements occurred between the horizontal
strip and the masonry blocks above and below the hori-
zontal strip. Meanwhile, “rustle” sounds were heard and
some blocks obviously plumped up and small parts of the
masonry blocks fell off from the wall. After the lateral
load reached the ultimate load, the width of big cracks
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 Transactions of Tianjin University Vol.19 No.6 2013

decreased a little. The concrete cracks of the construc-
tional columns gradually extended to the interior of the
masonry blocks and presented a main crack and multiple
secondary cracks. When the lateral load dropped to 85%
of the ultimate load, more crushing and falling phenom-
ena appeared in the masonry blocks and concrete, indicat-
ing that the wall had lost bearing capacity.
The failure modes of the four test walls are shown in
Fig.4. The failure modes of ZG-4 and ZG-5 are similar to
that of ZG-3.

(a) ZS-1 (b) ZG-1

(c) ZG-2 (d) ZG-3

Fig.4 Failure modes

2.2 Hysteretic curves and skeleton curves
The hysteretic curves of cyclic lateral load versus
the displacement of the six specimens are shown in Fig.5.
Before the cracking of the walls, the hysteretic
curves are basically linear and there are no residual de-
formations after unloading to zero, showing that the walls
are in the elastic stage. After the cracking of the walls,
the displacements of the walls gradually increase and the
hysteresis loops have an obvious phenomenon of knead-
ing. With the increase of load and cycle, the areas en-

(a) ZS-1 (b) ZG-1 (c) ZG-2

(d) ZG-3 (e) ZG-4 (f) ZG-5

Fig.5 Hysteretic curves of load-displacement

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Yu Jinghai et al: Experimental Study on Improving Seismic Behavior of Load-Bearing Masonry Wall Made of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete

closed within the hysteretic curves increase continuously. elastic-plastic characteristics. After the lateral load
The hysteresis loops gradually transform from a spindle reaches the ultimate load, the bearing capacity of the test
shape to a slight bow shape, indicating that sliding char- walls descends slowly. Due to the large shear bearing
acteristics appear in the walls. After the walls go through capacity provided by the constructional columns, the
large displacement and the load descends a lot, the walls skeleton curve of ZG-2 with side and middle construc-
with the constructional columns and horizontal strips can tional columns has a higher peak value. The failure dis-
still maintain stable hysteresis loops and the residual de- placement of ZG-1 is the biggest, which indicates that the
formations are small after unloading to zero, which indi- side columns can improve the deformation capacity of
cates that the walls have good restoring force characteris- the wall remarkably.
tics. The hysteresis loop of ZG-5 with two side columns
and two horizontal strips is the plumpest, which indicates
that the hysteretic characteristic and energy dissipation
capacity of ZG-5 are the best.
The skeleton curves of cyclic lateral load versus dis-
placement are shown in Fig.6.
The skeleton curves of the five test walls with con-
structional measures also have similar deformation proc-
esses. Before the cracking of the walls, the skeleton
Fig.6 Skeleton curves of load-displacement
curves show a certain nonlinear property, which still can
be considered as elastic stage although there are small 2.3 Bearing and deformation capacity
residual deformations after unloading to zero. After the The values of the bearing capacity, displacement,
cracking of the walls, the skeleton curves exhibit obvious and ductility coefficient of specimens are listed in Tab.3．

Tab.3 Bearing capacity, displacement, and ductility coefficient of specimens

Cracking state Ultimate state Failure state Ductility coef-
Specimen
Load Pc / kN Displacement  c / mm Load Pu / kN Displacement  u /mm Load Pf / kN Displacement  f / mm ficient 
ZS-1 87 0.7 123.2 2.7 99.0 5.05 6.4
ZG-1 72 1.5 133.2 13.8 110.3 19.5 13.0
ZG-2 84 0.4 186.3 10.4 165.4 13.6 34.0
ZG-3 104 1.5 149.1 9.0 121.0 12.0 8.0
ZG-4 96 1.4 143.8 9.7 111.2 14.0 10.1
ZG-5 120 1.3 165.1 7.8 140.3 11.9 9.2
[9,10]
Notes : (1) Data in Tab.3 are in accordance with the hysteretic curves and the readings of the dial indicators installed in the middle parts of the
specimens.(2) Failure state is the state corresponding to the last cycle and the failure load is 85% of the ultimate load.(3) Experimental
values of the load and displacement in Tab.3 are the average values in both positive and negative directions.(4) Due to construction rea-
son, the cracking displacement of ZG-2 is too small, leading to a large calculation result of improved degree of the ductility coefficient of
ZG-2.

Tab.3 shows that the values of the ultimate load of
the specimens with the constructional measures have
been improved to different degrees and the ultimate load
of ZG-2 is the highest, which indicates that the construc-
tional measures can improve the shear bearing capacity
significantly and the influence of the middle column on
the improvement of the bearing capacity is bigger than
that of the side columns and the horizontal strips. The
ultimate loads of ZG-3, ZG-4 and ZG-5 are higher than
that of ZG-1, which indicates that using different hori-
zontal strips can further improve the ultimate load to a
certain extent on the basis of the side columns. ZG-5 has
a higher ultimate load of 15% than that of ZG-4, which
shows that the ultimate load increases with the increase
of the number of the horizontal strips. The cracking loads
of ZG-1 and ZG-2 are not higher than that of ZS-1, which
indicates that the cracking load is almost not affected by
the constructional columns. The cracking loads of ZG-3,
ZG-4 and ZG-5 are about 24%, 10% and 38% higher than
that of ZS-1, respectively, which can be attributed to the
horizontal strips. The cracking load of ZG-5 is the big-
gest, which indicates that the constraint system consisting
of the constructional columns and horizontal strips can
confine the occurrence and extension of the cracks effec-

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 Transactions of Tianjin University Vol.19 No.6 2013
tively in the elastic stage before the cracking of the walls. increase of the number of the horizontal strips.
The ductility coefficient in Tab.3 is a ratio of yield
displacement to failure displacement,
  f / y
where  is the displacement ductility coefficient;  f is
the failure displacement, which is the displacement when
the load in the skeleton curve of load-displacement drops
to 85% of the ultimate load;  y is the yield displacement,
which is substituted by the cracking displacement  c in
this paper.
The ductility coefficients of ZG-1 and ZG-2 are
about 103% and 431% higher than that of ZS-1, respec-
tively, which indicates that the constructional columns
can remarkably improve the ductility of the walls and the
ductility coefficient increases with the increase of the
number of the constructional columns. The ductility coef-
ficient of ZG-5 is not higher than that of ZG-4, indicating
that the ductility coefficients of the walls do not increase
with the increase of the number of the horizontal strips.
3 Conclusions
(1) The plain wall without constructional measures
(the control wall) achieves the ultimate bearing capacity
quickly after cracking. Moreover, the descending branch
of the skeleton curve is short and the failure mode exhib-
its an obvious brittle failure characteristic.
(2) The constructional measures comprising the
constructional columns and horizontal concrete rein-
forcement strips can improve the seismic behavior of
AACLMW significantly. Moreover, the constructional
columns contribute more to the improvement of the duc-
tility of AACLMW.
(3) The horizontal strip is an effect way to confine
the occurrence and extension of the cracks. In addition,
the cracking load increases with the increase of the num-
ber of the horizontal strips.
(4) The ductility of AACLMW is improved with
the increase of the height of the horizontal concrete strips
and the number of the constructional columns. However,
the ductility of AACLMW does not increase with the
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(Editor: Liu Wenge)