Open Access

ARTICLE

Discrete Element Modelling of Damage Evolution of Concrete Considering Meso-Structure of ITZ

Weiliang Gao¹, Shixu Jia², Tingting Zhao^2,3,*, Zhiyong Wang²

1 Institute of Defense Engineering, Academy of Military Sciences, Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Beijing, 100850, China
2 College of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan, 030024, China
3 State Key Laboratory of Explosion Science and Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, 100081, China

* Corresponding Author: Tingting Zhao. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Recent Advances in Computational Methods for Performance Assessment of Engineering Structures and Materials against Dynamic Loadings)

Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences 2024, 139(3), 3495-3511. https://doi.org/10.32604/cmes.2023.046188

Received 21 September 2023; Accepted 13 December 2023; Issue published 11 March 2024

Abstract

The mechanical properties of interfacial transition zones (ITZs) have traditionally been simplified by reducing the stiffness of cement in previous simulation methods. A novel approach based on the discrete element method (DEM) has been developed for modeling concrete. This new approach efficiently simulates the meso-structure of ITZs, accurately capturing their heterogeneous properties. Validation against established uniaxial compression experiments confirms the precision of this model. The proposed model can model the process of damage evolution containing cracks initiation, propagation and penetration. Under increasing loads, cracks within ITZs progressively accumulate, culminating in macroscopic fractures that traverse the mortar matrix, forming the complex, serpentine path of cracks. This study reveals four distinct displacement patterns: tensile compliant, tensile opposite, mixed tensile-shear, and shear opposite patterns, each indicative of different stages in concrete’s damage evolution. The widening angle of these patterns delineates the progression of cracks, with the tensile compliant pattern signaling the initial crack appearance and the shear opposite pattern indicating the concrete model’s ultimate failure.

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Keywords

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