A 3D mesoscopic model for simulating failure process of concrete based on discrete element method

Abstract

A three-dimensional (3D) mesoscopic numerical model to simulate the failure process of concrete was developed based on the discrete element method (DEM). In this model, the concrete was considered as three phases consisting of aggregates, mortar and zero-thickness interfaces between aggregates and mortar. The elements were simplified as rigid bodies, and all of the adjacent elements were connected by springs. The solution of analysis was derived from the dynamic relaxation procedure of 3D DEM. The failure of material was initiated by fracture of springs, and contact action between elements was also considered. By using the proposed model, the failure processes of mortar and concrete in tension were considered respectively. Comparing with the experiment results, the simulation results indicated that the proposed 3D DEM model could be used to predict the mechanical behavior of mortar and concrete under tension descriptively and quantitatively for both continuous and discontinuous problems.