Effect of loading condition, specimen geometry, size-effect and softening function on double-K fracture parameters of concrete

Abstract

This paper presents numerical investigation of the influence of the specimen geometry, loading condition, size-effect and softening function of concrete on double-K fracture parameters. The input data needed for computation of the double-K fracture parameters are obtained from the well-known version of Fictitious Crack Model (FCM). FCM is developed for three standard specimens: three-point bend test, compact tension specimen and four-point bend test of size range 100-600 mm at relative size of initial crack length 0.3. The analysis of numerical results shows some interesting behaviour of double-K fracture parameters. © 2012 Indian Academy of Sciences.