On the Improvement of Monumental Structure Safety: a Case Study

The present paper deals with the problem of the preservation of the monumental patrimony and discusses a practical application. The analysis methodology based on modern dynamic identification techniques was used for a monumental church in the historic area of Catania (Italy). The dynamic response of the church was measured in terms of accelerations, by means of vibration tests in situ. The numerical analyses highlighted the vulnerability of the drum dome system. Hence interest focused on this part of the building. A reduced scale model of the above system was built to be subjected to dynamic tests on a shaking table at the ENEA laboratory at Casaccia (Rome). Different kinds of reversible devices for the improvement of the structural behavior experienced. The tests gave useful information about the effectiveness of several types of seismic devices inserted into the drum windows. The theoretical and the experimental results showed the importance of employing identification techniques for the improvement of the safety of monuments and of verifying the effectiveness of the reinforcing devices adopted in connection to the stiffness, the strength and the ductility.