Mesoscale analysis of crack propagation in reinforced concrete via positio- nal FEM using interface elements

Resumo

This work presents an alternative of mesoscale analysis of propagation of cracks in conventional reinforced
concrete structures. The equilibrium of the structure was achieved through the position-based formulation of
the Finite Element Method (FEM), which is naturally non-linear geometric. For mesoscale representation, the
concrete was considered a heterogeneous material composed of the matrix (mortar), the coarse aggregate and the
interfacial transition zone (ITZ). The rebar was represented by truss elements without adding degrees of freedom
to the problem. To represent the beginning and propagation of cracks, interface elements were created between
the matrix elements and between matrix and aggregate. The results obtained were compared with an experimental
work from the literature, for the crack path and for the load-displacement curve. It was possible to show results
close to the real ones, without using overly complex techniques.