Sustainable housing using confined masonry buildings

Much of India is prone to substantial earthquakes, and vulnerability associated with both unreinforced masonry (URM) and improperly built reinforced concrete (RC) frame constructions has been unmasked by past earthquakes. URM structures present a severe hazard in earthquake-prone regions. And non-engineered RC structures can lead to devastating consequences. Housing for families in the economically weaker sector and the lower-income group is undoubtedly challenging to such events. Regardless of residing in a city or village, everyone desires a house with masonry walls and RC roof, just like the buildings in larger urban areas. Confined masonry (CM) construction, which is a popular building system in many countries, can fulfil this need of society. Though CM building started informally, the seismic performance is found to be really well in several destructive earthquakes. This type of construction combines the advantages of URM and RC structures and does not need sophistication required in RC construction. In this paper, the seismic response of URM, infilled RC frame and CM buildings is compared using past seismic performance and literature. It is concluded that confined masonry is a better alternative for sustainable housing in seismic-prone regions of India.