Dynamic Identification of Large Thin Shell Structures in Concrete

The paper presents the results of a recent testing campaign carried out on the vaulted structures built by Pier Luigi Nervi in Torino Esposizioni. Nervi’s halls are a spatial structure masterpiece, admired for their daring and innovative conception. The technological achievements of the 20th century have allowed conceiving unprecedented large scale and complex structures. However, the experimental nature of numerous innovative structural and spatial configurations adopted by the designers of the time have revealed over time intrinsic fragilities that, when neglected, have threatened their long-term structural integrity. In addition, 20th century’s structures were usually conceived without accounting for seismic actions, but only for static configurations, in accordance with the technical standards of the time. Therefore, it is of crucial importance to assess the dynamic behavior of these structures to understand their vulnerability and plan their correct preservation measures. Due to its complex configuration, the setup of dynamic testing campaign for Hall B built by Nervi presented many challenges, including: i) the complex optimization problems due to the spatial characters of the vaulted structure; ii) the possible effects of damage degradation or anomalies. The aims of this investigation were to investigate the behavior of historical spatial structures to seismic actions; and to detect the presence of possible structural anomalies.