Computational homogenization for predicting the effective response of planar textile-reinforced concrete shells

Abstract

Textile-reinforced concrete (TRC) exhibits a complex mechanical response, necessitating accurate and advanced models for analysis. This work shows the possibilities to model TRC using a two-scale approach. On the sub-scale, the response is predicted using Representative Volume Elements (RVEs), where the textile yarns are resolved. This approach makes it possible to capture the effects of bond–slip, interfilament slip, as well as concrete cracking and crushing. The large-scale plate response, in terms of membrane forces and bending moments, is obtained by homogenizing the results from the RVE using Kirchhoff plate kinematics. The outcome shows the possibilities of obtaining effective large-scale responses for varying sub-scale configurations. In this way, we omit the need for re-calibrating the large-scale model for every new reinforcement configuration. The scale-bridging framework developed in this work can be employed in large-scale plate and shell models to predict the effective constitutive response of TRC.