Terrestrial laser scanners (TLS) are widely employed in structural health monitoring (SHM) of large objects due to their superior capabilities compared to traditional geodetic methods. TLS provides rapid and detailed data on the geometric properties of objects, enabling various types of analyses. In this study, TLS was utilized to examine the minaret of the Bjelave Mosque, located in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The inclination of the minaret was assessed using principal component analysis (PCA) and linear regression (LR) applied to sampled data from four edges of the minaret’s body. The geodetically determined inclination values were used as input data for subsequent static and pushover analyses conducted in DIANA FEA, where the minaret was modeled. The analyses indicate that the inclination increases stress and strain, leading to larger cracks and reduced structural capacity, as demonstrated by the pushover analysis curves. This study highlights the combined impact of structural inclination, water infiltration, and settlement on the minaret’s integrity and proposes these findings as a basis for future maintenance and strengthening measures.

Although the influence of infill masonry on horizontal load structure behavior is well-documented, current standards and regulations have yet to fully incorporate or explicitly define the load-bearing capacity of this complex system. Canadian and American standards present more comprehensive and specific methodologies for calculating the load-bearing capacity of infill masonry and frame systems. In contrast, European standards tend to focus on offering general guidelines for the design of these systems without delving into the detailed calculation procedures. However, extensive data and experimental studies on this topic are available in the literature. The primary aim of this paper was to compile a database of experiments involving frames with different types of infill masonry. Subsequently, the empirical results obtained through the application of analytical expressions from various standards are compared to the experimental data included in the compiled database. The obtained load-bearing values were compared to different standards and work conducted by various researchers found in the literature in order to assess their reliability. Based on the obtained results, important conclusions were drawn, specifically to the most accurate equivalent diagonal model used and the analytical expressions to be used in the assessment of the masonry-infilled steel frame behavior. The equivalent diagonal model, utilized in all analytical expressions, can provide highly accurate estimations of load-bearing capacities that closely align with the experimental results. Regardless of the type of infill element, the analytical expressions consistently overestimated the load-bearing capacity. In the presence of longitudinal force, analytical expressions tend to be conservative, providing significantly lower load-bearing values compared with experimental results, which ensures a safety margin. The database can be utilized to develop numerical models, which can subsequently serve as the foundation for probabilistic methods used in conducting reliability assessments.

This paper presents an in-depth analysis of the Kopčić House, a significant example of modernist architecture in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, focusing on its structural-specific features and seismic performance. The Kopčić House embodies a confined masonry structure with innovative construction features, combining load-bearing masonry walls with reinforced concrete elements. This architectural approach was pioneering for its time, combining traditional construction methods with innovative materials and techniques. Detailed analysis using numerical modeling techniques, specifically 3D modeling with the 3Muri software (Vers.14.2.0.4), was conducted to assess the seismic resilience of the structure. The analysis considered different load distributions and eccentricities to comprehensively evaluate the building’s response to lateral forces. The findings of this research reveal the structural capacity and potential vulnerabilities of the Kopčić House when subjected to seismic events. While the building demonstrates inherent strength due to its confined masonry design, areas requiring structural strengthening were identified through numerical simulations. This study contributes to the broader understanding of confined masonry construction within the context of modernist architecture. By integrating historical research with advanced structural analysis, this work aims to bridge the gap between architectural heritage and contemporary engineering practices.

The 2020 earthquakes that hit the Croatian capital city Zagreb and Petrinja revealed the (un)preparedness of the country once exposed to strong earthquake motion. Three years after, numerous buildings out of 25,000 that have been heavily damaged and destroyed still have not been reconstructed. The effect of the earthquake was felt as well in the bordering cities and towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH). Seismic assessment of the existing buildings in BIH is done by individual researchers and there is no defined methodology not policy for such activities. This paper aims to present the work that has been done in this field up to now and to give guidelines for the further work that needs to be conducted. The starting point was the calculation of the earthquake risk for the entire Bosnia and Herzegovina based on the rapid assessment taking into account the vulnerability of buildings, seismic hazard, and population exposure. A more detailed assessment was conducted for the three largest cities in BIH, specifically Sarajevo, Banja Luka, and Tuzla. Typical residential masonry structures were identified, and detailed calculations were conducted, leading to the need for their strengthening. To have a more detailed picture much work has to be conducted.

Minarets, tall structures, connected or not to the mosque attract attention due to their specific architectural features. Vulnerability to seismic damage has been witnessed throughout history on tall and slender structures after earthquake ground motions. In that respect, it is of the utmost importance to investigate the dynamic characteristics and resilience of historical stone minarets. This paper aims to provide the results of an on-site dynamic investigation of a stone minaret in Mostar and deliver its seismic assessment. The minaret is part of the Tabačica mosque built at the turn of the 16th and 17th century in the City of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The on-site investigation comprised dynamic identification of the minaret by ambient vibration testing and qualitative estimation of the masonry wall by sonic pulse velocity testing. Besides the modal analysis a time-history analysis was performed by using the Applied Element Method (AEM), considered an appropriate tool for assessing the behavior of historic masonry structures. A good match is found between the first natural frequency obtained by the on-site investigation and the modal analysis which is a solid basis for further seismic assessment of the minaret as a slender tower-like structure. The concentration of stresses is observed at the transition zones.

Minarets are slender and tall structures that are built from different types of materials. Modern materials are also starting to be used in such structures with the recent developments in material technology. The seismic vulnerability and dynamic behavior of minarets can vary, depending on the material characteristics. Within this study’s scope, thirteen different material types used in minarets in Türkiye were chosen as variables. A sample minaret model was chosen as an example with nine different heights to reveal how material characteristic change affects seismic and dynamic behavior. Information and mechanical characteristics were given for all the material types. Natural fundamental periods, displacements, and base shear forces were attained from structural analyses for each selected material. The empirical period formula for each material is proposed using the obtained periods, depending on the different minaret heights taken into consideration. At the same time, fundamental natural periods for the first ten modes and 13 different types of materials used in the study were estimated with the established Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model. The real periods from the experimental analyses were compared with the values estimated by the ANN using fewer parameters, and 99% of the results were successful. In addition, time history analyses were used to evaluate the seismic performance of the minaret (three different materials were considered). In this specific case, the acceleration record from the 2011 Van (Eastern Turkiye) earthquake (Mw = 7.2) was taken into consideration. Performance levels were determined for the minaret according to the results obtained for each material. It has been concluded that material characteristics significantly affect the dynamic and seismic behavior of the minarets.

Data from past earthquakes is an important tool to reveal the impact of future earthquakes on engineering structures, especially in earthquake-prone regions. These data are important indicators for revealing the seismic loading effects that structures will be exposed to in future earthquakes. Five different earthquakes from six countries with high seismic risk were selected and were within the scope of this study. The measured peak ground acceleration (PGA) for each earthquake was compared with the suggested PGA for the respective region. Structural analyzes were performed for a reinforced-concrete (RC) building model with four different variables, including the number of storeys, local soil types, building importance class and concrete class. Target displacements specified in the Eurocode-8 were obtained for both the suggested and measured PGA values for each earthquake. The main goal of this study is to reveal whether the proposed and measured PGA values are adequately represented in different countries. We tried to reveal whether the seismic risk was taken into account at a sufficient level. In addition, target displacements have been obtained separately in order to demonstrate whether the measured and suggested PGA values for these countries are adequately represented in structural analysis and evaluations. It was concluded that both seismic risk and target displacements were adequately represented for some earthquakes, while not adequately represented for others. Comments were made about the existing building stock of the countries considering the obtained results.