Investigation of sample size effect on AAC walls according to ASTM E519 diagonal shear test

It is very important to determine the shear strength of the walls in the structures with masonry or frame system as close to the truth in terms of estimating the seismic performance of the structure correctly. Since the shear strength of the walls can affect the load bearing capacity, ductility and rigidity of the structure, it is necessary to determine their strength correctly. There are various national/international standards for determining the wall shear strength. In the most widely used ASTM E519 standard, shear strength is determined by testing 120x120 cm samples. However, it is striking that samples smaller than the dimensions specified in the standard are used in the experiments for various reasons such as cost, workmanship, convenience and laboratory facilities. Studies show that there is insufficient experimental data to be used in evaluating the effect of sample size on shear strength or in a correlation that will convert wall sample test results with smaller scales than specified in the standard to actual size samples. In this study, the strengths of 5 different sizes of aerated concrete wall samples smaller than the sample size specified in ASTM E519 were experimentally investigated. As a result of the study, it was observed that higher shear strengths were obtained when the aerated concrete wall sample sizes were taken in smaller sizes than the ASTM E519 standard, compared to those obtained from the dimensions required by the standard. In this study, as a result of experimental studies on aerated concrete wall panels, the relationship between sample sizes and diagonal shear strengths is presented graphically.