1 Annual Report - The Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka

Chaminda Konthesingha, a Research Associate at the Centre for InfrastructurePerformance and Reliability, University of Newcastle, gave the final presentation on“Cyclic In-Plane Shear Behaviour of Unreinforced Masonry Wall Panels strengthenedwith NMS FRP Strips”. Chaminda demonstrated the vulnerability of unreinforcedmasonry to seismic loadings using examples from the recent earthquake damagedbuildings in Christchurch, New Zealand. The methods of Fibre Reinforced Polymer(FRP) strengthening using either external bonding or Near Surface Mounting (NSM),and out of these the advantages NSM in maintaining aesthetics was explained withdiagrams. Chaminda’s experiments on cyclic lateral loading of NSM FRP ondamaged and new walls, and the resulting impacts on shear strength, displacement,energy dissipation, and ductility proved that substantial improvements can beachieved in strengthening existing unreinforced masonry against earthquakeloadings.