The “Mechanics of Materials and Structures” Laboratory (MMS Lab) of ISTI-CNR carries out research, software development and consulting in the field of continuum mechanics, with particular focus on structural engineering. The main research topics are:

Computational solid mechanics
Development of mathematical models, numerical methods and software for modelling the thermo-mechanical behaviour of solids with a view toward engineering applications. The models studied and the algorithms formulated have been implemented in the finite element code for nonlinear analyses NOSA, entirely developed by the members of the Laboratory. The NOSA code has been successfully applied to a number of engineering problems.

Mechanics of masonry structures
Development of mechanical models and software for the structural analysis of ancient masonry constructions. In particular, the NOSA-ITACA code, entirely developed by our team, allows for modelling the nonlinear behaviour of masonry constructions under static and dynamic loads, by taking into account the material’s inability to withstand tensile stresses.

Structural health monitoring of historic buildings
Structural monitoring of historical buildings through sensor networks and numerical tools for the dynamic identification of the structures.