External R.C. structural walls for the repair of earthquake damaged buildings

The paper intends to present two case studies in which external Reinforced Concrete (R.C.) structural walls have been adopted to repair small masonry and reinforced concrete buildings damaged by an earthquake. The first example deals with a one storey school building which, following the earthquake of Iseo of November 13th, 2003, experienced the detachment of the roof structure from the supporting masonry structure, leading to a diffuse, albeit not severe, damage scenario. The second example deals with the repair of a small residential house which showed considerable damage in the main peripheral structural masonry walls following the earthquake of Salò of November 24th, 2004. The paper will discuss the structural choice undertaken, and will show the structural details adopted for the repair. A discussion on the costs for the adopted structural solution will be performed, with the aim to pinpoint the main advantages, both from a practical and economical standpoint.