Mechanical behaviour of the Orvieto tuff

The understanding of the failure mechanisms at the margin of the tuffaceous slab on which the ancient town of Orvieto rises entails a comprehensive study on the mechanical behaviour of the Orvieto tuff. The paper reports the preliminary results of the research. First, a description of the textural and mineralogical features which can influence the material behaviour is given. Then the yielding surface, the stress-strain behaviour and the influence of uniaxial and triaxial loading on static and dynamic elastic moduli are discussed.