Simulation‐based investigation of the influence of the micro‐structure and disorder on damage evolution in concrete

Abstract

AbstractConcrete is a material with a random disordered microstructure across multiple scales. The effective macroscopic material behavior of concrete is strongly dependent on the material properties and the interactions of the individual constituents at the micro‐scale. Failure of concrete as a quasi‐brittle material is generally characterized by fracture processes occurring within the fracture process zone (FPZ) that governs strain softening behavior, followed by localization of damage eventually leading to structural failure. The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of micro‐structure and initial disorder on damage evolution in a strongly heterogeneous material such as concrete. The principal mechanism of failure is assumed to be governed by a cascade of localized micro‐cracking and re‐distribution of stresses [1]. This mechanism is modeled within the scope of this work using a voxel‐sized finite element approximation of the disordered micro‐structure with a non‐uniform distribution of strengths for each material phase. Further, the behavior of the crack and the fracture process zone is linked to a simple stochastic model for analyzing disorder ‐ the fiber bundle model.