No abstract

In this work, a refined interelement diffuse fracture theoretical model, based on a cohesive finite element approach, is proposed for concrete and other quasibrittle materials. This model takes advantage of a novel micromechanics‐based calibration technique for reducing the artificial compliance associated with the adopted intrinsic formulation. By means of this technique, the required values for the elastic stiffness parameters to obtain nearly invisible cohesive interfaces are provided. Furthermore, the mesh‐induced toughening effect, essentially related to the artificial crack tortuosity caused by the different orientations of the interelement cohesive interfaces, is numerically investigated by performing comparisons with an additional fracture model, newly introduced for the purpose of numerical validation. These comparisons are presented to assess the reliability and the numerical accuracy of the proposed fracture approach.

A novel multiscale strategy is proposed for the damage analysis of masonry structures modeled as periodic composites. Such a computational strategy, whose aim is to reduce the typically high computational cost exhibited by fully microscopic numerical analyses, is based on a multiscale/multidomain model equipped with an adaptive capability, which allows to automatically zoom-in the zones incipiently affected by damage onset. The associated model refinement criterion requires the determination of microscopically informed first failure surfaces, which take into account both classical and bending deformation effects, by taking advantage of a couple-stress based homogenization technique. In order to assess the efficacy of the proposed multiscale modeling strategy, some numerical simulations are presented, involving a medium-sized wall test subjected to combined shear and flexure loading conditions. The related accuracy and computational performances of this methodology are investigated via suitable comparisons with a purely discrete model of masonry. Special attention is devoted to the analysis of the bending macroscopic deformation effects. Further comparisons with experimental results taken from the literature are carried out in order to validate its predictive capability in terms of peak and post-peak mechanical behavior.

The aim of the present work was to investigate the mechanical behavior of orthotropic composites, such as masonry assemblies, subjected to localized loads described as micropolar materials. Micropolar models are known to be effective in modeling the actual behavior of microstructured solids in the presence of localized loads or geometrical discontinuities. This is due to the introduction of an additional degree of freedom (the micro-rotation) in the kinematic model, if compared to the classical continuum and the related strain and stress measures. In particular, it was shown in the literature that brick/block masonry can be satisfactorily modeled as a micropolar continuum, and here it is assumed as a reference orthotropic composite material. The in-plane elastic response of panels made of orthotropic arrangements of bricks of different sizes is analyzed herein. Numerical simulations are provided by comparing weak and strong finite element formulations. The scale effect is investigated, as well as the significant role played by the relative rotation, which is a peculiar strain measure of micropolar continua related to the non-symmetry of strain and work-conjugated stress. In particular, the anisotropic effects accounting for the micropolar moduli, related to the variation of microstructure internal sizes, are highlighted.