Masonry · Reinforced masonry
Reinforced masonry shear wall (AS 3700) calculator
Core-filled reinforced blockwork wall racking under an in-plane horizontal force. Shear capacity Vd = φ(fvr·Ar + 0.8fsy·As) with fvr from the aspect ratio and the governing horizontal/vertical steel, in-plane bending from the end-zone bars with the masonry compression block, and the overturning tension at the wall end.
Standard: AS 3700-2018 Cl 8.6 in-plane shear, Cl 8.6.3 in-plane bending · core-filled hollow blockwork
Inputs in the worked example
The live calculator starts with these values; change any of them and every result, check and diagram updates instantly.
| Input | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Wall length | 3.6 | m |
| Wall height (to the load) | 2.7 | m |
| Thickness (core-filled block) | 190 | mm |
| Masonry f′m (grouted) | 8 | MPa |
| fsy | 500 | MPa |
| Horizontal steel (bond beams), total | 600 | mm² |
| Vertical steel in the wall, total | 1200 | mm² |
| End-zone vertical bars (each end) | 400 | mm² |
| In-plane shear V* | 150 | kN |
| Permanent vertical load on the wall (0.9G) | 60 | kN |
Worked example — results
| Result | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| H/L | 0.75 | |
| fvr | 1.13 | MPa |
| Steel used in shear As | 600 | mm² |
| Bedded area Ar | 684 | ×10³ mm² |
| Shear capacity Vd | 757 | kN |
| Overturning moment M* = V*H | 405 | kNm |
| In-plane bending capacity Md | 501 | kNm |
| End tension to anchor (after 0.9G) | 89 | kN |
- ✓ V* ≤ Vd — 20 %
- ✓ M* ≤ Md — 81 %
- ✓ End bars anchor the tension (0.8·fsy·Ae) — 89 kN
Method, formulas and assumptions
- Cl 8.6.2: Vd = φ(fvr·Ar + 0.8fsy·As), φ = 0.75; fvr = 1.5 − 0.5H/L for H/L ≤ 1 (As the smaller of horizontal and vertical steel), fvr = 1.0 MPa and As horizontal for H/L > 1.
- In-plane bending: Md = φ·fsy·Ae·d(1 − 0.6fsy·Ae/(1.3f′m·t·d)) with d = L − 200 mm to the end-zone bars.
- End tension = M*/d − 0.9G/2 must be anchored into the footing (hooks or starter bars lapped).
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For preliminary design and education. Check every result against the current standard and your own engineering judgement before use.