Planar tomography and numerical analysis for damage characterization of impact loaded RC plates

The damage analysis of reinforced concrete (RC) is of high interest for reasons of effective maintenance and structural safety of buildings. The damage structures of RC plates loaded by an impact were investigated, applying X-ray planar tomography and finite element method (FEM). Planar tomography allows getting three-dimensional information of the RC elements and the damage including crack, spalling, and scabbing. The FEM model validated on the tomography data justifies the application for further predictions of the damage description. In this study, we investigated concrete plates of three different thickness subjected to impacts at different low- and medium-velocity, whereby the used impactor had a flat tip, which resulted in small penetrations on the front side and scabbing on the rear side. In order to quantify the damage, the damage volume and its distribution through the plate were computed and the correlations between degree of damage and impact velocity were found out.