A length scale insensitive phase-field model for fully coupled thermo-mechanical fracture in concrete at high temperatures

Fracture in concrete at high temperatures involves complex thermo-mechanical couplings and arbitrary crack evolution, imposing great challenges to its computational modeling. This work addresses a length scale insensitive phase-field cohesive model for fully coupled thermo-mechanical fracture in concrete at high temperatures. Both the thermal expansion and transient creep strain are accounted for in the kinematics. Based on the underlying phase-field cohesive model for fracture in solids at ambient temperature, the temperature-dependent mechanical properties of concrete, that is, Young's modulus, tensile and compressive strengths and fracture energy, and so forth, are all incorporated. In addition to the cracking-induced mechanical damage mechanism represented by the crack phase-field, the thermal deterioration mechanism is also considered by a temperature-dependent thermal damage variable. The numerical implementation of the proposed model into the multi-field finite element method is then briefly addressed. Several representative numerical examples, for example, thermally induced cracking in energy storage structures, thermal shock in quenched concrete plates, mode-I and mixed-mode failure of notched beams at high temperatures, and so forth, are presented for the validation. The effects of various expressions for the transient creep strain (TCS) on the global behavior of concrete structures are also studied. As in those purely mechanical problems, both the predicted crack pattern and global responses for all examples are insensitive to the incorporated phase-field length scale. Being able to capture the fully coupled thermo-mechanical fracture in concrete, the proposed phase-field cohesive model, combined with a reliable hydro-chemo-thermal analysis, is promising in assessing the integrity and safety of concrete structures at high temperatures like fire scenarios.

Automated summary

This study proposes a length scale insensitive phase-field cohesive model for fully coupled thermo-mechanical fracture in concrete at high temperatures. The model is able to capture the thermo-mechanical fracture process of concrete and assess the integrity and safety of concrete structures at high temperatures using reliable hydro-chemo-thermal analysis.