Tousif Mahmood, a doctoral candidate in civil engineering, will defend their dissertation titled “Evaluating and Relaxing the Limits on Flexural Reinforcement Ratio of Masonry Shear Walls.” Their advisor, Dr. Mohamed ElGawady, is a professor in civil, environmental, and architectural engineering. The dissertation abstract is provided below.

Reinforced masonry shear walls (RMSWs), essential for lateral and out-of-plane load-resisting systems in modern construction are constrained by TMS 402/602 code limits on reinforcement ratios (ρ_max) and axial compressive stresses (≤10% of masonry compressive strength, 𝑓_𝑚 ′  ), undermining masonry’s inherent compression capacity under high axial loads. This dissertation investigates the seismic performance of reinforced masonry shear walls (RMSWs) subjected to high axial compressive stresses (10–20% of 𝑓_𝑚 ′ ), with a focus on walls violating the maximum reinforcement ratio (ρ_max) and axial load limits of TMS 402-22. Through experimental testing of 30 large-scale fully grouted (FG) and partially grouted (PG) walls under in-plane and out-of-plane cyclic loading and advanced finite element (FE) modeling, the study evaluates failure mechanisms, ductility, energy dissipation, and stiffness degradation. Key findings reveal that many code-noncompliant walls exhibit ductile flexural failure with drift capacities exceeding 2%, masonry strains 2–3× the TMS 402-22 limit (0.0025), and plasticity extending up to 78% of wall height. However, walls with shear-dominant behavior or axial loads exceeding 15% experienced reduced ductility (e.g., 29% loss in PG walls) and localized damage. The FE framework proposes revised shear strength equations with axial load correction factors, addressing code conservatism (30% underestimation). Revisions for compression zone depth and curvature-based ductility metrics improve boundary element triggers. Recommendations advocate strain-based design over ρ_max constraints, relaxed axial load limits, and redefined plastic hinge lengths for RMSWs to optimize seismic resilience while reducing overdesign.