About this Research Topic
Cracks and discontinuities play an essential role in the behavior of quasi-brittle materials, such as concrete, geo-materials, ceramics, ice etc., and their complete understanding and accurate modelling is, to date, still an open challenge. Above a certain threshold of mechanical loading, these materials can develop distributed micro-cracks, some of which may eventually coalesce into localized macro-cracks. But degradation can also be caused by environmental loading, and the effect of the latter can be crucial due to the interaction effects between reactive transport phenomena in the environment, such as moisture movement, radiation or chemical activity, and the mechanical response and cracking. Similarly, the flow of pressurized fluids through material porosity and cracks can generate crack propagation and lead to strong coupling.
A proper understanding and assessment of the several deterioration mechanisms that can affect quasi-brittle materials and act simultaneously, requires sound multi-physics models, including mechanical and flow/diffusion/reaction/transport behavior. The highly heterogeneous nature of these materials may also play a key role in the studies. In that case, multi-scale models, such as micro- or meso-mechanical models, where the heterogeneities are explicitly described, may help to considerably simplify the constitutive description, at the cost of a higher computational effort, which in turn may require parallel high-performance
computing.
This Research Topic is intended to gather contributions on all those and related topics, including mainly numerical modeling, but also related experimental and theoretical studies. Classical models based on a continuum or a discrete approach, as well as more recent techniques such as XFEM, phase field, etc. are welcome.
• In-depth understanding and modelling of deterioration in quasi-brittle materials.
• Numerical investigation of degradation caused by direct mechanical actions as well as flow/diffusion/transport-induced actions.
• Cracking due to durability-related phenomena, such as drying shrinkage, high temperatures, alkali-silica-reaction, sulphate attack, etc.
• Cracking, or opening of existing fractures, in rock masses due to fluid injections such as hydraulic fracture.
• Robust multi-physics models to properly understand and evaluate the several deterioration mechanisms and their simultaneous action.
• Multi-scale models, in which heterogeneities are explicitly described and degradation processes are established for individual components, given the key role of the highly
heterogeneous nature of materials in the deterioration processes.
• Models implementation in a high-performance computing environment.
A proper understanding and assessment of the several deterioration mechanisms that can affect quasi-brittle materials and act simultaneously, requires sound multi-physics models, including mechanical and flow/diffusion/reaction/transport behavior. The highly heterogeneous nature of these materials may also play a key role in the studies. In that case, multi-scale models, such as micro- or meso-mechanical models, where the heterogeneities are explicitly described, may help to considerably simplify the constitutive description, at the cost of a higher computational effort, which in turn may require parallel high-performance
computing.
This Research Topic is intended to gather contributions on all those and related topics, including mainly numerical modeling, but also related experimental and theoretical studies. Classical models based on a continuum or a discrete approach, as well as more recent techniques such as XFEM, phase field, etc. are welcome.
• In-depth understanding and modelling of deterioration in quasi-brittle materials.
• Numerical investigation of degradation caused by direct mechanical actions as well as flow/diffusion/transport-induced actions.
• Cracking due to durability-related phenomena, such as drying shrinkage, high temperatures, alkali-silica-reaction, sulphate attack, etc.
• Cracking, or opening of existing fractures, in rock masses due to fluid injections such as hydraulic fracture.
• Robust multi-physics models to properly understand and evaluate the several deterioration mechanisms and their simultaneous action.
• Multi-scale models, in which heterogeneities are explicitly described and degradation processes are established for individual components, given the key role of the highly
heterogeneous nature of materials in the deterioration processes.
• Models implementation in a high-performance computing environment.
Keywords: Quasi-brittle materials, deterioration, durability mechanics, numerical modelling, multi-physics models, multi-scale models, parallel high-performance computing, hydraulic fracture
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