Compressive Properties of Structural Clay Tile Prisms

Abstract

Many buildings have been constructed with structural clay tile masonry as either infills, bearing walls, or partitions. Little data are available on the strength and constitutive properties of structural clay tile. The limited historical data and the results of some recent testing of structural clay tile prisms are presented. The current program tested side constructed prisms, or prisms with horizontal cells. Testing was performed at various angles to the bed joint. For loading perpendicular to the bed joint, the prism strength can be conservatively estimated as three-tenths of the unit tile strength. A linear relationship between the modulus of elasticity and the prism strength was also developed. Prisms loaded perpendicular to the bed joint exhibited an abrupt brittle failure, with the strain at peak load averaging 0.0014.