Effects of Meso-scale Modeling on Concrete Fracture Parameters Calculation

Mechanical fracture brings about considerable financial and living costs to various communities. Since the early twentieth century, the issue has been scientifically under scrutiny. Hence, it is of necessity to explore the failure of various materials including concrete as one of the most widely used materials in the construction industry. In examining the concrete structures, while it is assumed that concrete is a homogeneous material, it consists of several components such as cement paste, an aggregate of sand, gravel, and air, and the components play an essential role in determining correct concrete behavior. Hence, in the present research, to calculate the concrete fracture parameters under the three-point bending experiment, 100 distributions of aggregates and cement matrix were considered, and fracture factor and integral J were investigated, and contrary to expectations, the second and third fracture modes were also created. Besides, energy release ratio distribution along the beam thickness becomes unsymmetrical, contributing to early failure and crack propagation.