B1/II Multiscale simulation of the fracture behaviour of fiber-reinforced concrete under impact load

Doctoral Researcher
Hannah Knobloch

Principal Investigator
Stefan Löhnert

in cooperation with 
Silke Scheerer

Project poster
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The fracture behaviour of fiber-reinforced concrete under impact load is strongly dependent on the meso-structure of the composite. The nucleation and the growth of microcracks up to the size of a macrocrack is influenced by the embedded fibers as well as the meso-structure of the concrete. In addition, under highly dynamic load, on the mesoscale waves propagate and reflect leading to complex wave patterns that have a significant influence on the fracture behaviour. To be able to predict the macroscopic failure of fiber-reinforced concrete structures under impact loads, multiscale simulations are necessary.

Sketch of the multiscale projection method

Sketch of the multiscale projection method

Within this project the multiscale projection method (MPM) in combination with the XFEM are extended for highly dynamic loads to accurately simulate the crack nucleation and propagation behaviour on the mesoscale as well as on the macroscale. The goal is to make predictions about the quality and the properties of different textile and fiber-reinforcements regarding their impact safety. The extension of the MPM requires an additional projection of the inertia terms between scales and an investigation of dynamic effects along the boundary of the fine scale domain. The validation of the results is planned in cooperation with doctoral candidates of other research training group projects.