Weiliang Gao¹, Shixu Jia², Tingting Zhao^2,3,*, Zhiyong Wang²

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.139, No.3, pp. 3495-3511, 2024, DOI:10.32604/cmes.2023.046188

Abstract The mechanical properties of interfacial transition zones (ITZs) have traditionally been simplified by reducing the stiffness of cement in previous simulation methods. A novel approach based on the discrete element method (DEM) has been developed for modeling concrete. This new approach efficiently simulates the meso-structure of ITZs, accurately capturing their heterogeneous properties. Validation against established uniaxial compression experiments confirms the precision of this model. The proposed model can model the process of damage evolution containing cracks initiation, propagation and penetration. Under increasing loads, cracks within ITZs progressively accumulate, culminating in macroscopic fractures that traverse the mortar matrix, forming the complex,… More >

Jintao He, Dong Lei^*, Xuwei Cui, Pengxiang Bai, Feipeng Zhu

The International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences, Vol.21, No.4, pp. 78-78, 2019, DOI:10.32604/icces.2019.05228

Abstract With the combination of scanning electron microscope (SEM) and digital image correlation (DIC), the mechanical properties of interfacial transition zone (ITZ) in concrete are experimentally studied. The experimental compression tests are performed on cuboid samples whose half part is aggregate and the other part is mortar. The morphology of the ITZ is captured by SEM under compressive load, and from the recorded images the deformation of the ITZ is analyzed. After that, the distribution of the nominal compressive elastic modulus of the ITZ is obtained along the distance from the aggregate to the mortar, which can be used to characterize… More >