Assessment of mechanical properties of full-scale masonry panels through sonic methods. Comparison with mechanical destructive tests

Sonic tests are a valid and useful non-destructive method for qualitative characterization of masonry elements. If sonic tests are applied with the right configuration, the results can identify discontinuities in masonry sections and provide the morphology of a construction typology, contributing to the assessment of built heritage as demanded by the international recommendations on this domain. The elaboration of data from sonic tests applied to masonry structures has been essentially based on the evaluation of the P waves’ propagation through the masonry thickness, that is, by using the direct sonic method, a procedure that has been calibrated for many years by different authors. However, recent studies have shown that indirect configurations through the indirect sonic impact method may be used to estimate the mechanical properties of stones masonry samples. This procedure allows assessing not only P but also R wave propagation, permitting to estimate the deformability characteristics of masonry panels. Under this research, a set of stone masonry specimens was tested using both direct and indirect sonic impact methods and later assessed through laboratory mechanical compression tests, a procedure’s sequence that allow validating the sonic tests capabilities.