Crack Propagation in Flexural Fatigue of Concrete
Publication: Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 126, Issue 9
Abstract
In this paper the behavior of concrete subjected to flexural fatigue loading is studied. Notched concrete beams were tested in a three-point bending configuration. Specimens were subjected to quasi-static cyclic and constant amplitude fatigue loading. The cyclic tests were performed by unloading the specimen at different points in the postpeak part of the quasi-static loading response. Low cycle, high amplitude fatigue tests were performed to failure using four different load ranges. The crack mouth opening displacement was continuously monitored throughout the loading process. Crack propagation caused by quasi-static and fatigue loads is described in terms of fracture mechanics. It is shown that the crack propagation in the postpeak part of the quasi-static load response is predicted using the critical value of the mode I stress intensity factor (KIC). The ultimate deformation of the specimen during the fatigue test is compared with that from the quasi-static test; it is demonstrated that the quasi-static deformation is insufficient as a fatigue failure criterion. It is observed that crack growth owing to constant-amplitude fatigue loading comprises two phases: a deceleration stage when there is a decrease in crack growth rate with increasing crack length, followed by an acceleration stage where the rate of crack growth increases at a steady rate. The crack length where the rate of crack growth changes from deceleration to acceleration is shown to be equal to the crack length at the peak load of the quasi-static response. Analytical expressions for crack growth in the deceleration and acceleration stages are developed, wherein the expressions for crack growth rate in the deceleration stage are developed using the R-curve concept, and the acceleration stage is shown to follow the Paris law. It is observed that the crack length at failure for constant amplitude fatigue loading is comparable to that of the corresponding load in the postpeak part of the quasi-static response. Finally, a fracture-based fatigue failure criterion is proposed.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
ACI Committee 215. (1982). Fatigue of concrete structures, Publ. SP-75, S. P. Shah, ed., American Concrete Institute, Detroit.
2.
Aglan, H. A., and Bayomy, F. A. (1998). “Innovative approach to fatigue crack propagation in concrete pavements.” Transp. Res. Rec. 1568, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., 17–23.
3.
Baluch, M. H., Qureshy, A. B., and Azad, A. K. (1987). “Fatigue crack propagation in plain concrete,” Proc., SEM/RILEM Int. Conf. on Fracture of Concrete and Rock, S. P. Shah and S. E. Swartz, eds., 80–87.
4.
Bazant, Z. P., and Planas, J. (1998). “Fracture and size-effect in concrete and quasi-brittle materials.” CRC, Boca Raton, Fla.
5.
Bazant, Z. P., and Schell, W. F. (1993). “Fatigue fracture of high-strength concrete and size effect.” ACI Mat. J., 90(5), 472–478.
6.
Bazant, Z. P., and Xu, K. (1991). “Size effect in fatigue fracture of concrete.” ACI Mat. J., 88(4), 390–399.
7.
Gyltoft, K. ( 1983). “Fracture mechanics models for fatigue in concrete structures.” PhD thesis, Div. of Struct. Engrg., Lulea University of Technology, Lulea, Sweden.
8.
Hordijk, D. A. ( 1991). “Local approach to fatigue of concrete.” PhD thesis, Technische Universiteit Delft, Delft, The Netherlands.
9.
Hordijk, D. A., and Reinhardt, H. W. (1993). “Numerical and experimental investigation into the fatigue behavior of plain concrete.” Experimental Mech., 83(4), 278–285.
10.
Jenq, Y. S., and Shah, S. P. (1985). “Two parameter fracture model for concrete.”J. Engrg. Mech., ASCE, 111(10), 1227–1241.
11.
Jun, Z., and Stang, H. (1998). “Fatigue performance in flexure of fiber-reinforced concrete.” ACI Mat. J., 95(1), 58–67.
12.
Li, V. C., and Matsumoto, T. (1998). “Fatigue crack growth analysis of fiber reinforced concrete with effect of interfacial bond degradation.” Cement and Concrete Compos., 20, 339–351.
13.
Oh, B. H. (1991). “Fatigue-life distributions of concrete for various stress levels.” ACI Mat. J., 88(2), 122–128.
14.
Otter, D. E., and Naaman, A. E. (1988). “Properties of steel fiber reinforced concrete under cyclic loading.” ACI Mat. J., 85(4), 254–261.
15.
Ouyang, C., and Shah, S. P. (1991). “Geometry dependent R-curve for quasi-brittle materials.” J. Am. Ceramic Soc., 74(11), 2831–2836.
16.
Paskova, T., and Meyer, C. (1994). “Optimum number of specimens for low-cycle fatigue tests of concrete.”J. Struct. Engrg., ASCE, 120(7), 2242–2247.
17.
Perdikaris, P. C., and Calomino, A. M. (1987). “Kinetics of crack growth in plain concrete.” Proc., SEM/RILEM Int. Conf. on Fracture of Concrete and Rock, S. P. Shah and S. E. Swartz, eds., 64–69.
18.
Perdikaris, P. C., Calomino, A. M., and Chudnovsky, A. (1986). “Effect of fatigue on the fracture toughness of concrete.”J. Engrg. Mech., ASCE, 112(8), 776–791.
19.
RILEM Committee 36-RDL. (1984). “Long term random dynamic loading of concrete structures.” Mat. and Struct., Paris, 17(9), 1–28.
20.
Shah, S. P. (1990). “Determination of fracture parameters and CTODC) of plain concrete using three-point tests.” Mat. and Struct., Paris, 23, 457–460.
21.
Shah, S. P., and Chandra, S. (1970). “Fracture of concrete subjected to cyclic and sustained loading.” ACI J., 67(9), 816–825.
22.
Shah, S. P., Swartz, S. E., and Ouyang, C. (1995). Fracture mechanics of concrete, Wiley, New York.
23.
Subramaniam, K. V. ( 1999). “Fatigue response of concrete subjected to biaxial loading in the tension region.” PhD dissertation, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill.
24.
Subramaniam, K. V., Goldstein, G., Popovics, J. S., and Shah, S. P. (1999a). “Monitoring crack length in concrete beams using resonance measurements.” Proc., SPIE—Int. Soc. for Optical Engrg., 1999 Nondestructive Evaluation of Aging Aircraft, Airports, and Aerospace Hardware III, Vol. 3586, 129–136.
25.
Subramaniam, K. V., Popovics, J. S., and Shah, S. P. (1998). “Monitoring fatigue damage in concrete.” Proc., 1997 Mat. Res. Soc. Fall Meeting, Vol. 503, 151–157.
26.
Subramaniam, K. V., Popovics, J. S., and Shah, S. P. (1999b). “Fatigue response of concrete subjected to biaxial fatigue in the compression-tension region.” ACI Mat. J., 96(6), 663–669.
27.
Suresh, S. (1991). Fatigue of materials, Cambridge University Press, New York.
28.
Zhang, J. ( 1998). “Fatigue fracture of fiber reinforced concrete—An experimental and theoretical study.” PhD dissertation, Denmark Technical University, Lyngby, Denmark, 131–135.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 126 • Issue 9 • September 2000
Pages: 891 - 898
History
Received: Apr 28, 1999
Published online: Sep 1, 2000
Published in print: Sep 2000
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.