Zdenek P. Bazant

Bio: Zdenek P. Bazant is an academic researcher from Northwestern University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Creep & Fracture mechanics. The author has an hindex of 82, co-authored 301 publications receiving 20908 citations. Previous affiliations of Zdenek P. Bazant include École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne & Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Microplane Model M7 for Plain Concrete. II: Calibration and Verification

Abstract: The microplane material model for concrete, formulated mathematically in the companion paper, is calibrated by material test data from all the typical laboratory tests taken from the literature. Then, the model is verified by finite-element simulations of data for some characteristic tests with highly nonuniform strain fields. The scaling properties of model M7 are determined. With the volumetric stress effect taken from the previous load step, the M7 numerical algorithm is explicit, delivering in each load step the stress tensor from the strain tensor with no iterative loop. This makes the model robust and suitable for large-scale finite-element computations. There are five free, easily adjustable material parameters, which make it possible to match the given compressive strength, the corresponding strain, the given hydrostatic compression curve, and certain triaxial aspects. In addition, there are many fixed, hard-to-adjust parameters, which can be taken to be the same for all concretes. The opt...

Microplane Model M5 with Kinematic and Static Constraints for Concrete Fracture and Anelasticity. I: Theory

Abstract: Following the formulation of the constitutive model in the preceding Part I in this issue, the present Part II addresses the problems of computational algorithm and convergence of iterations. Typical numerical responses are demonstrated and the parameters of the model are calibrated by test data from the literature.

Microplane Model for Fracture Analysis of Concrete Structures

Abstract: : Dynamic fracture analysis of concrete structures necessitates a triaxial stress-strain relation that describes gradual strain-softening with reduction of tensile stress to zero. A new model which does that and is applicable under general loading, including rotating principal stress directions, is a proposed. It is based on accumulating stress relaxations due to microcracking from the planes of all orientation within the microstructure. Comparisons with tensile test data are given.

Strain Softening with Creep and Exponential Algorithm

Abstract: A constitutive relation that can describe tensile strain softening with or without simultaneous creep and shrinkage is presented, and an efficient time-step numerical integration algorithm, called the exponential algorithm, is developed. Microcracking that causes strain softening is permitted to take place only within three orthogonal planes. This allows the description of strain softening by independent algebraic relations for each of three orthogonal directions, including independent unloading and reloading behavior. The strain due to strain softening is considered as additive to the strain due to creep, shrinkage and elastic deformation. The time-step formulas for numerical integration of strain softening are obtained by an exact solution of a first-order linear differential equation for stress, whose coefficients are assumed to be constant during the time step but may vary discontinuously between the steps. This algorithm is unconditionally stable and accurate even for very large time steps, and guarantees that the stress is always reduced exactly to zero as the normal tensile strain becomes very large. This algorithm, called exponential because its formulas involve exponential functions, may be combined with the well-known exponential algorithm for linear aging rate-type creep. The strain-softening model can satisfactorily represent the test data available in the literature.

Size effect in pullout tests

Abstract: The results of tests of the pullout strength of reinforcing bars embedded in concrete are reported. The test specimens are 1.5, 3, and 6-in. cubes with geometrically similar bars. The results are found to be consistent with Bazant's size effect law for the nominal stress at softening failures due to disturbed cracking. Based on the size effect law, an approximate formula predicting pullout strength is develoed.

Theoretical stress strain model for confined concrete

Abstract: A stress‐strain model is developed for concrete subjected to uniaxial compressive loading and confined by transverse reinforcement. The concrete section may contain any general type of confining steel: either spiral or circular hoops; or rectangular hoops with or without supplementary cross ties. These cross ties can have either equal or unequal confining stresses along each of the transverse axes. A single equation is used for the stress‐strain equation. The model allows for cyclic loading and includes the effect of strain rate. The influence of various types of confinement is taken into account by defining an effective lateral confining stress, which is dependent on the configuration of the transverse and longitudinal reinforcement. An energy balance approach is used to predict the longitudinal compressive strain in the concrete corresponding to first fracture of the transverse reinforcement by equating the strain energy capacity of the transverse reinforcement to the strain energy stored in the concret...

Crack band theory for fracture of concrete

Abstract: A fracture theory for a heterogenous aggregate material which exhibits a gradual strain-softening due to microcracking and contains aggregate pieces that are not necessarily small compared to structural dimensions is developed. Only Mode I is considered. The fracture is modeled as a blunt smeard crack band, which is justified by the random nature of the microstructure. Simple triaxial stress-strain relations which model the strain-softening and describe the effect of gradual microcracking in the crack band are derived. It is shown that it is easier to use compliance rather than stiffness matrices and that it suffices to adjust a single diagonal term of the complicance matrix. The limiting case of this matrix for complete (continuous) cracking is shown to be identical to the inverse of the well-known stiffness matrix for a perfectly cracked material. The material fracture properties are characterized by only three parameters—fracture energy, uniaxial strength limit and width of the crack band (fracture process zone), while the strain-softening modulus is a function of these parameters. A method of determining the fracture energy from measured complete stres-strain relations is also given. Triaxial stress effects on fracture can be taken into account. The theory is verified by comparisons with numerous experimental data from the literature. Satisfactory fits of maximum load data as well as resistance curves are achieved and values of the three material parameters involved, namely the fracture energy, the strength, and the width of crack band front, are determined from test data. The optimum value of the latter width is found to be about 3 aggregate sizes, which is also justified as the minimum acceptable for a homogeneous continuum modeling. The method of implementing the theory in a finite element code is also indicated, and rules for achieving objectivity of results with regard to the analyst's choice of element size are given. Finally, a simple formula is derived to predict from the tensile strength and aggregate size the fracture energy, as well as the strain-softening modulus. A statistical analysis of the errors reveals a drastic improvement compared to the linear fracture theory as well as the strength theory. The applicability of fracture mechanics to concrete is thus solidly established.