Limit Analysis of Masonry Arches under vertical Loads applied out middle plane

The objective of this work is to study the behaviour of masonry arches discretized in rigid blocks under vertical loads applied out of middle plane with the aim to evaluate the collapse multiplier of above-mentioned loads. This evaluation is obtained through a simple procedure founded on the Static Theorem of Limit Analysis, on the assumption of unlimited compressive strength, inability to carry tension and sliding with dilatancy on the interfaces between the rigid blocks. The method has been already used with success by the authors for other masonry structural typologies discretized in rigid blocks, such as panels and domes under increasing vertical or horizontal loads, and arches subjected to increasing plane loads. In the actual problem the process involves a limited number of unknowns and conditions and the solution can be obtained easily through the Excel program’s solver. Once the collapse load multiplier is obtained, the collapse mechanism is found.