Analysis of post-cracking stage in SFRC elements through a non-linear numerical approach

This paper aims to investigate and model the post-cracking behavior of steel fibre reinforced concrete (SFRC) elements, which is characterised by more distributed, narrower and closely spaced cracks with respect to ordinary reinforced concrete. A numerical procedure based on non-linear fracture mechanics concepts has been developed to take into account the main mechanisms governing the problem, namely the tension softening, related to the bridging effect provided by aggregates and fibres across cracks, and the tension stiffening between steel bars and surrounding concrete. The effectiveness of the proposed approach has been then verified through comparisons with significant experimental tests available in technical literature concerning SFRC slabs, tension ties and beams.