Numerical modeling of a majestic masonry structure: A comparison of advanced techniques

The present study aims to provide a comparative analysis between discontinuous models (DM) and continuous models (CM) for the analysis of majestic masonry structures subjected to seismic events. Specifically, the study models the ‘Santa Maria Annnuziata’ church damaged after the Central Italy earthquake sequence in 2016 and 2017 years. The DM is evaluated using different types of interaction laws between blocks: the Discrete Element Method (DEM) and the Non-Smooth Contact Dynamic method (NSCD). The nonlinearity of the material in the CM, instead, is considered using the Concrete Damage Plasticity model (CDP). To assess the models' effectiveness in identifying vulnerable elements, non-linear dynamic analysis is performed through the main earthquake events recorded nearby the church during the Central Italy earthquake. Following this, the models are subjected to the 7.8- magnitude earthquake that occurred in February 2023 in Turkey to observe the damage evolution under higher magnitude events. The primary objective of this study is to improve the understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of both models and their potential applications in the analysis of historic masonry structures.