Numerical Modelling of Mechanical Behaviour of Fibre Reinforced Cementitious Composites

Abstract

In this paper, a new numerical model is developed to model the tensile behavior of the cementitious composites reinforced with hybrid bagasse fibres and steel fibres based on the extended finite element method. The numerical model considers random fibre distribution, which is generated automatically, and the cohesive behavior, which represents the bonding between fibres and the matrix. The cementitious matrix is modeled using extended finite element method. The developed numerical model is implemented in commercial software ABAQUS and the computed results are compared with the corresponding experimental results for numerical validation. It is found that the tensile behavior of the composites predicted from the new numerical model is consistent with that obtained from experimental study, and that the developed numerical model can accurately predict the uniaxial tensile behavior, including the post-cracking behavior of fibre reinforced cementitious composites.