Title:
The Italian Challenge for the Sustainability of Existing Concrete Construction
Author(s):
Andrea Prota
Publication:
Web Session
Volume:
ws_S23_AndreaProta.pdf
Issue:
Appears on pages(s):
Keywords:
DOI:
Date:
4/2/2023
Abstract:
Over the last years Italy has started to tackle the huge challenge of assessing the structural capacity and retrofitting of existing Reinforced Concrete (RC) buildings and bridges. L’Aquila (2009), Emilia Romagna (2012), Central Italy, and Ischia (2017) earthquakes have clearly pointed out the unsatisfactory behavior of the RC building stock; the majority of existing RC buildings have been built with no seismic provisions and/or when the zone was not classified as seismic. Another significant recent event has been the failure of Polcevera bridge in Genova (2018); since then, a strong activity has been started in order to assess the structural safety of the thousands of RC bridges over the Italian territory. For existing RC bridges degradation and durability need to be addressed even prior to protection against seismic and landslide risks. The paper shows an overview of the main deficiencies of existing RC buildings and bridges; then, strategies and experiences are presented demonstrating that technical knowledge and innovation in materials and techniques provide sound solutions for fast and low impact interventions that can allow to increase the safety of Italian buildings and bridges. Emphasis is given to the integration of structural retrofit and energy reduction that will allow to ensure the sustainability of the building stock.