Barcelona test for tensile strength characterisation of solid fired clay bricks

The study presents an adapted version of the Barcelona test for the determination of tensile strength in solid fired clay bricks. The proposed methodology involves testing 40 mm cubic specimens, validated through an extensive experimental programme comprising 25 different brick types. These include mechanically extruded, mechanically moulded, and handmade bricks, both contemporary and collected from existing buildings. Additionally, numerical simulations using finite element analysis are employed for the validation of the methodology and the interpretation of the obtained failure mode. The study highlights the effectiveness of the proposed testing procedure in determining tensile strength for solid fired clay bricks, and includes a comparison of experimental and numerical findings, establishing a robust correlation between compressive and tensile strengths. The experimental results showed that the tensile strength of the considered bricks ranges from 0.56 MPa to 4.37 MPa, with a corresponding average compressive-to-tensile strength ratio of 11.1. The numerical simulations, using a 3D continuum approach and considering compressive and tensile damage mechanisms, closely match the experimental load.