Peridynamics-coupled finite element method implication in concrete material crack prediction

This study presents a multi-bond element stiffness matrix to couple peridynamics with the finite element method, where mass points are denoted as elements with the degree of freedom to have a certain number of mass points. The proposed peridynamics-coupled finite element method (PDFEM) based on multi-bond element is demonstrated to be effective in the crack and fracture prediction of concrete materials. In addition, experimental test results and the compression and bidirectional load numerical simulations’ results are compared, and good agreement is observed. In the single compression simulation of concrete specimen, fracture crack occurs along with the compression load direction. In bidirectional load simulations of concrete specimen, different settings of load lead to changeable fracture cracks. Furthermore, the comparison with finite element method (FEM) also shows good agreement. The crack, mass point fracture percentage, and stress state of the concrete specimen are investigated under different load conditions and simulation times, and the results demonstrate a promising prospect of the proposed PDFEM in the field of fracture prediction of concrete materials.