This chapter presents the results of a geotechnical and geophysical tests and a Deterministic Seismic Hazard Assessment (DSHA) carried out for the San Pedro Apostol de Andahuaylillas church in Peru, also known as the Sistine Chapel of the Andes for its magnificent paintings. The DSHA is one of the key components of the ongoing seismic vulnerability study led by the Engineering and Heritage research group of the PUCP University, in Lima, Peru. This structural seismic vulnerability study is motivated primarily because of the historical, architectural and artistic features of this church, built circa the late 16th or early 17th century, which was declared part of the Cultural Heritage of Peru in 2010. The church was built by the Jesuits in the sixteenth century over a pre-colombian huaca. Construction for the church was in two main phases. In 1570 construction started with a small chapel an...

The development of the LPDS methodology component was funded by the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Tecnológica del Perú (CONCYTEC from its acronym in Spanish), according to the Convenio de Gestión N° 232-2015-FONDECYT. The support to the first two authors is greatly appreciated. The team would like to thank Dr. S. Gibson (University of the Holy Land), the head archaeologist working at the SJH for inviting the third and fourth author to work in this project. The third and fourth author would like to thank the Armenian Patriarchate and Father Asbed at the Church of the Nativity convent for the access to the site. Engineer Issa Juha, graduate students Peter Hubbard and Mauricio Gonzales, and Dr. Steve Patterson provided support to the team during the experimental campaign. The opinions presented herein do not necessarily reflect the opinions of CONCYTEC, or of th...

This paper involves a practical approach to perform quality-control/quality-assessment of concrete using vibration-based NDT. The first component is the analysis of compressive strength and dynamic E-modulus of concrete samples from various construction projects. The second component involves continuous measurements of E-Moduli as a function of curing time in laboratory-controlled specimens. The experimental program allowed proposing a correlation to predict the expected static and dynamic E-modulus at 28 days from their measurement at any instant of the curing process. A similar relationship is proposed to predict compressive strength at 28 days based on the dynamic E-modulus measured at earlier ages.

This paper presents a comprehensive update of the structural damage assessment of the complex Huaca de la Luna, which is one the most important heritage monuments in northern Peru, and was built by the Moche civilization from 100 AD to 650 AD. The paper presents an overview of the initial hypothesis identified to explain the nature of the damage encountered in the Huaca. The results highlight how the combination of material evaluations, coupled with geotechnical investigations have been essential in constructing a series of 2D nonlinear FE models for the structural analyses under gravitational loading of the Huaca. Results of the analyses conducted to date show the importance of a multidisciplinary approach for assessing the structural safety in these types of buildings. © 2016 Taylor & Francis Group, London.

The study investigates the feasibility of using chitosan biopolymer as an admixture, or as an external coating, for earthen constructions to improve their resistance in two components: water induced degradation and key mechanical properties. The resistance to water induced degradation was evaluated in terms of contact angle and drip erosion tests, while the influence on mechanical properties was measured through compressive, tensile and three-point bending tests. The results indicate that the use of low concentrations of chitosan can improve significantly the performance in the two components and therefore was found to be a promising treatment for new or existing construction.