Open Access

ARTICLE

Finite Element Analysis on the Uniaxial Compressive Behavior of Concrete with Large-Size Recycled Coarse Aggregate

Tan Li, Jianzhuang Xiao^*, Amardeep Singh

Department of Structural Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China

* Corresponding Author: Jianzhuang Xiao. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Recycled Concrete Towards a Sustainable Society)

Journal of Renewable Materials 2022, 10(3), 699-720. https://doi.org/10.32604/jrm.2022.016898

Received 07 April 2021; Accepted 18 June 2021; Issue published 28 September 2021

Abstract

To model the concrete with complex internal structure of concrete with large sized aggregates the effect of internal structure on uniaxial compression behavior are studied. Large-sized recycled aggregates behave differently in the concrete matrix. To understand the influence on concrete matrix, a finite element model was developed to model recycled aggregate concrete composed of multiple randomly distributed irregular aggregates and cement mortar. The model was used to calculate the effect of large-size recycled coarse aggregate (LRCA) on the strength of recycled aggregate concrete and simulate the compressive strength of cubes and prisms. The factors such as the strength of new concrete, the strength of old concrete, the defective element content, the shape of LRCA, the incorporation ratio of LRCA and the size of LRCA that can affect the strength of concrete are analyzed in this paper. Results showed that the influence of various factors on concrete strength are in the following desending order: (i) strength of newly poured concrete; (ii) original strength of recycled aggregates; and (iii) defects. It can be seen that the cracking of the phase material elements starts along the bonding zones between gravel and mortar or the new and old mortar, then spreads to mortar and finally to LRCA. The cracking tendency is most significant in LRCA, which means that the fracturing is related to the fracture of the LRCA. After evaluating the variations in strength and quality of the recycled concrete, the influences on concrete strength and quality were studied. The results showed that the proposed concrete model with LRCA was successfully applied to studying the uniaxial compressive behavior of concrete with large-size recycled coarse aggregate.

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