Reinforced Polymer Concrete Screen Walls

Apertures is a six-story, commercial building in the Roma Norte neighborhood of Mexico City–a neighborhood severely impacted by the 1985 and 2017 earthquakes. In the wake of major seismic events, concrete and concrete masonry construction were subject to the most significant damage including collapse. Despite this, masonry continues to be prominent in Mexican construction due to its ease of installation, the familiarity of the local labor pool with the material, and their subsequent affordability (Fry 2008). In Mexico City, as in many other regions of the world, masonry is typically utilized in one of two manners with each affording a different set of benefits: reinforced masonry and confined masonry are used for their structural performance, but yield opaque facades which limit glazing and are less desirable for many commercial uses today (Rodriguez 2007); alternatively, breeze block masonry is used to create decorative screen walls and provides functional benefits such as solar shading, privacy, natural ventilation, and views, however they lack reinforcement and are limited in their potential use. The facade design for Apertures merges characteristics of both masonry types into a single system integrating concealed, structural reinforcement into custom, hollow-face breeze blocks. This system enables masonry facades to provide seismic resilience in addition to the functional benefits (such as daylighting, shading, and natural ventilation) while yielding new forms and aesthetics. Notable elements of the new system are the use of polymer concrete and the inclusion of embedded steel plates which allow continuous reinforcement through mechanically fastened connections, and each block can have large horizontal openings. Furthermore, subtle variations in the connections between reinforcing plates allows for complete assemblies to achieve complex geometries without sacrificing the structural integrity of the system.