STRUCTURAL MAINTENANCE, REPAIR AND ANALYSIS OF HISTORIC TIMBER JOINT CONNECTIONS

摘要

This paper presents work completed on the investigation of the bespoke knee joint connections on the historic timber war ship, the HMS Victory which was built in 1765 and now sits in permanent dry dock at Portsmouth historic dockyard. It is the consideration of this paper that the observed ductility of the structure and the reduced connectivity of the knee joints has been influenced by the reduction in mechanical fixings in the joints which has occurred as a result of ongoing restoration work and change of use. The original fixing specifications have been researched through a historic review and the current state of fixings has been observed using a variety of survey techniques. The present state of the mechanical fixings has been found to have reduced the connectivity of the knee joints. Finite element analysis has shown that the reduction in connectivity has compromised the structural efficacy of the knee joints and contributed to the observed ductility of the structure.