Comsol Simulations of Cracking in Point Loaded Masonry with Randomly Distributed Material Properties

TL;DR

This study uses COMSOL simulations to analyze stress and crack development in masonry with randomly varied material properties, providing insights into how material variability affects fracture behavior.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel simulation approach incorporating random material properties to better understand masonry cracking under load.

Findings

Stress distribution varies with material property randomness

Cracking patterns are influenced by initial E-value variability

Simulation results align with experimental observations

Abstract

This paper describes COMSOL simulations of the stress and crack development in the area where a masonry wall supports a floor. In these simulations one of the main material properties of calcium silicate, its E-value, was assigned randomly to the finite elements of the modeled specimen. Calcium silicate is a frequently used building material with a relatively brittle fracture characteristic. Its initial E-value varies, as well as tensile strength and post peak behavior. Therefore, in the simulation, initial E-values were randomly assigned to the elements of the model and a step function used for describing the descending branch. The method also allows for variation in strength to be taken into account in future research. The performed non-linear simulation results are compared with experimental findings. They show the stress distribution and cracking behavior in point loaded masonry when varying material properties are used.