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Meso-structural study of concrete fracture using interface elements. I: numerical model and tensile behavior

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Abstract

A recently developed FE-based mesostructural model for the mechanical behavior of heterogeneous quasi-brittle materials is used systematically to analyze concrete specimens in 2D. The numerical model is based on the use of zero-thickness interface elements equipped with a normal-shear traction-separation constitutive law representing non-linear fracture, which may be considered a mixed-mode generalization of Hillerborg’s “Fictitious Crack Model.” Specimens with 4 × 4 and 6 × 6 arrays of aggregates are discretized into finite elements. Interface elements are inserted along the main lines in the mesh, representing potential crack lines. The calculations presented in this paper consist of uniaxial tension loading, and the continuum elements themselves are assumed to behave as linear elastic. In this way, the influence of various aspects of the heterogeneous geometry and interface parameters on the overall specimen response has been investigated. These aspects are aggregate volume fraction, type of arrangement and geometry, interface layout, and values of the crack model parameters chosen for both the aggregate-aggregate and matrix-aggregate interfaces. The results show a good qualitative agreement with experimental observations and illustrate the capabilities of the model. In the companion second part of the paper, the model is used to represent other loading states such as uniaxial compression, Brazilian test, or biaxial loading.

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Acknowledgements

This research has been supported by grants MAT2003-02481 and BIA2006-12717 funded by MEC (Madrid), and 80015/A04 funded by MFOM (Madrid). The first author also wishes to thank MEC for the “Ramon y Cajal” research position received during the period 2001–2006.

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  1. ETSECCPB (School of Civil Engineering), UPC (Technical Univ. of Catalonia), Campus Nord, Edif. D2, E-08034, Barcelona, Spain

    Carlos M. López, Ignacio Carol & Antonio Aguado

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  1. Carlos M. López
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  2. Ignacio Carol
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  3. Antonio Aguado
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Correspondence to Carlos M. López.

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López, C.M., Carol, I. & Aguado, A. Meso-structural study of concrete fracture using interface elements. I: numerical model and tensile behavior. Mater Struct 41, 583–599 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-007-9314-1

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