Numerical modeling of shrinkage induced cracking in cementitious materials with three-dimensional simulation and phase-field method

Abstract

This study investigates the damage and cracking of concrete induced by drying shrinkage. While previous studies have primarily focused on two-dimensional configurations, this research employs three-dimensional phase-field simulations of concrete samples undergoing the drying process. The distribution of inclusions is derived from tomographic images of real samples. The analysis includes the evolution of the damage field and the propagation of cracked zones. The study introduces the formulation and implementation of the numerical method and applies it to elucidate the cracking process resulting from drying shrinkage in concrete composites with various types of inclusions. Numerous numerical simulations were conducted to accurately depict the cracking process induced by drying shrinkage in the samples, evaluating the effects of different inclusions with varying stiffness on the concrete’s cracking phenomenon and comparing the impact of various energy degradation methods on crack simulation. Moreover, the study analyzes the influence of the spatial distribution of the inclusions in the three-dimensional simulation and compares the numerical results with experimental observations.