Description:

Types of defects, symptoms, significance, criticality, causes, reason for failures,
Records of faults: origin, frequency, performance
Agencies causing deterioration, durability of materials, role of external forces, instability and deficiency of structures, failure patterns
Failures of foundation, walls and DPCs, claddings and roofs

Contents:

1. Approach to building failures
2. Principles and procedures of structural diagnosis
3. Investigation kits, visit to diagn. laboratory
4. Manifestation of failures,types of defects, reasons for failures
5.-6. Agencies causing deterioration of building materials, durability
7. Failures and remedial work of foundations
8. Failures remedial work of walls and DPCs
9. Failures and remedial work of vaults and arches
10. Failures and remedial work of horizontal load-bearing structures
11. Failures remedial work of timber structures
12. Failures remedial work of concrete and steel structures
13. Protection and rehabilitation of monuments

Seminar contents:

1. semestral assignment
2.-3. inspection in-situ (diagnostic equipment)
4.-5. laboratory testing and analysis of building material properties (mechanical, chemical, micro-biological)
6. professional excursion

Recommended literature:

[1] Ashurst J., Ashurst N.: Practical Building Conservation, volume 1-3, ISBN 0-291-39747-6
[2] Hollis M.: Pocket Surveying Buildings, RICS Books, ISBN 978-1-84219-242-9

Keywords:

Defects and Failures of Building Structures, Deterioration and Corrosion, Durability and Reliability, Forced and Non-forced Load, Load History, Diagnostics and surveying, Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Renovation, Historical Structures

Abbreviations used:

Semester:

• W ... winter semester (usually October - February)
• S ... spring semester (usually March - June)
• W,S ... both semesters

Mode of completion of the course:

• A ... Assessment (no grade is given to this course but credits are awarded. You will receive only P (Passed) of F (Failed) and number of credits)
• GA ... Graded Assessment (a grade is awarded for this course)
• EX ... Examination (a grade is awarded for this course)
• A, EX ... Examination (the award of Assessment is a precondition for taking the Examination in the given subject, a grade is awarded for this course)

Weekly load (hours per week):

• P ... lecture
• C ... seminar
• L ... laboratory
• R ... proseminar
• S ... seminar