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Computers and Concrete Volume 31, Number 2, February 2023 , pages 151-161 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12989/cac.2023.31.2.151 |
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Investigating spurious cracking in finite element models for concrete fracture |
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Gustavo Luz Xavier da Costa, Carlos Alberto Caldeira Brant, Magno Teixeira Mota, Rodolfo Giacomim Mendes de Andrade, Eduardo de Moraes Rego Fairbairn and Pierre Rossi
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| Abstract | ||
| This paper presents an investigation of variables that cause spurious cracking in numerical modeling of concrete fracture. Spurious cracks appear due to the approximate nature of numerical modeling. They overestimate the dissipated energy, leading to divergent results with mesh refinement. This paper is limited to quasi-static loading regime, homogeneous models, cracking as the only nonlinear mode of deformation and cracking only due to tensile loading. Under these conditions, some variables that can be related to spurious cracking are: mesh alignment, ductility, crack band width, structure size, mesh refinement and load increment size. Case studies illustrate the effect of each variable and convergence analyses demonstrate that, after all, load-increment size is the most important variable. Theoretically, a sufficiently small load increment is able to eliminate or at least alleviate the detrimental influence of the other variables. Such load-increment size might be prohibitively small, rendering the simulation unfeasible. Hence, this paper proposes two alternatives. First, it is proposed an algorithm that automatically find such small load increment size automatically, which not necessarily avoid large computations. Then, it is proposed a double simulation technique, in which the crack is forced to propagate through the localization zone. | ||
| Key Words | ||
| concrete; convergence; finite element; spurious cracks | ||
| Address | ||
| Gustavo Luz Xavier da Costa, Carlos Alberto Caldeira Brant, Magno Teixeira Mota and Eduardo de Moraes Rego Fairbairn: Civil Engineering Department, COPPE, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, P.O. Box 68506 ZIP Code 21941-972, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, Brazil Rodolfo Giacomim Mendes de Andrade: Civil Engineering and Buildings Department, Federal Institute of Espírito Santo, Avenida Vitória, 1729 ZIP Code 29040-780, Vitória - ES, Brazil Pierre Rossi: French Institute of Science and Technology for Transport, Development and Networks (IFSTTAR) Gustave Eiffel University, F-77447 Marné-la-Vallée, France | ||