Experimental Evaluation and Probabilistic Analysis of the Masonry Veneer Wall Tie Characteristics

Wall tie strengths and stiffnesses are not constant for all ties in a masonry veneer wall system. This paper uses an Australian standard tie calibration experimental approach to delve into wall-tie probabilistic characterisation by estimating the mean, variance, and characteristic axial tensile and compressive strengths and how they influence failure behaviour. A total of 50 veneer brick-tie-timber subassemblies are tested using an Instron testing machine, 25 samples in compression and 25 samples in tension. Both cross head displacement and displacement across the cavity is recorded along with the complete load versus displacement response, which allows determination of elastic stiffness, peak strength and displacement capacity. Using the maximum likelihood method, a range of probability distributions are fitted to tie strength and corresponding displacement histogram data sets, and a best-fitted probability distribution is selected for each case. A Cumulative Distribution Function plot was also used along with the Anderson-Darling test to infer a goodness-of-fit for the probabilistic models.