Experimental and numerical studies of crack propagation in self-compacting lightweight concrete

For determination of the fracture parameters of self-compacting lightweight concrete (SCLC) size effect and work of fracture methods were used. For considering the behavior of concrete in different strengths, two mixes with water to cement (W/C) ratios of 0.42 and 0.47 were utilized. At first, the workability of the concrete was investigated and, after ensuring their self-compacting properties, the mechanical properties of the hardened concrete were determined. Then, by using the above-mentioned methods and conducting three-point bending tests on 30 beams, concrete fracture parameters, and crack-tip opening displacement were achieved. The results showed that with increasing W/C ratio from 0.42 to 0.47, the initial and total fracture energies, and fracture toughness decreased by 39.4%, 33.4% and 25.3%, respectively. The effect of the W/C ratio on the fracture parameters of this type of concrete was discussed. Furthermore, several empirical relations have been proposed that by the use of them and only by the determination of the compressive strength, the initial fracture energy, total fracture energy, the ratio of energies to each other, and fracture toughness can be determined. Then, by using the fracture parameters, the mechanical properties of the concrete and the extended finite-element method, the crack propagation was modeled. The results showed that this method has high accuracy in the numerical solution of the fracture problems as well as the efficiency of the obtained parameters for determining the behavior of self-compacting lightweight concrete.