Computational Evaluation of the Effect of Air Void Content on the Mechanical Properties of 2D Permeable Friction Courses (PFC)

摘要

This work uses computational mechanics modeling to study the influence of the air void (AV) content in the mechanical response of permeable friction courses (PFC). Multiple geometries representing realistic microstructures of 10 × 10 cm PFC specimen were randomly generated using gravimetric techniques through discrete element (DE) modeling. The target AV content of these microstructures was 15%, 20%, and 25%. The dynamic modulus of the PFCs was quantified through finite element (FE) techniques using the commercial software Abaqus. The results corroborated that PFCs with higher AV values-which are promoted by agencies in order to guarantee high permeability-have lower stiffness, weaker internal microstructures and, consequently, they are expected to have durability issues.