Microcracks size growth prediction based on microdefects nucleation number

摘要

The mechanical reason for rock and concrete failure is trans-scale fracture, which can be divided into three phases: (1) microcrack evolution, (2) macrocrack nucleation, (3) macrocrack growth and run-through. Using the idea that a microcrack could be regarded as a well-organized aggregation of nucleated microdefects, the size growth model of the largest microcrack based on the accumulated number of microdefect nucleation is established. In order to test the validity of the model, trans-scale fracture of a plate made of heterogeneous material is numerically simulated to display the microcrack's evolution. Statistical analysis of the number and sizes of the microcracks indicates that the predicted size of the largest microcrack according to the model is in close agreement with the measured crack size prior to peak stress, but not at all close to the measured values after the peak. At the end of the paper, some remaining problems are proposed for the further work.