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This paper addresses the modeling of fracture in quasi-brittle materials using a phase-field approach to the description of crack topology. Within the computational mechanics community, several studies have treated the issue of modeling fracture using phase fields. Most of these studies have used an approach that implies the lack of a damage threshold. We herein explore an alternative model that includes a damage threshold and study how it compares with the most popular approach. The formulation is systematically explained within a rigorous variational framework. Subsequently, we present the corresponding three-dimensional finite element discretization that leads to a straightforward numerical implementation. Benchmark simulations in two dimensions and three dimensions are then presented. The results show that while an elastic stage and a damage threshold are ensured by the present model, good agreement with the results reported in the literature can be obtained, where such features are generally absent.

This paper presents a model-free data-driven framework for breakage mechanics. In contrast with continuum breakage mechanics, the de facto approach for the macroscopic analysis of crushable granular media, the present framework does not require the definition of constitutive models and phenomenological assumptions, relying on material behavior that is known only through empirical data. For this purpose, we revisit the recent developments in model-free data-driven computing for history-dependent materials and extend the main ideas to materials with particle breakage. A systematic construction of the modeling framework is presented, starting from the closed-form representation of continuum breakage mechanics and arriving at alternative model-free representations. The predictive ability of the data-driven framework is highlighted and contrasted with continuum breakage mechanics on different boundary value problems. Moreover, an application to a real experimental test in crushable sand is presented, where the data is furnished by high-fidelity grain-scale simulations, indicating that the proposed framework provides an accurate prediction of the mechanics of crushable materials including the state of comminution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐resolution images of environmental variables are highly valuable sources of information in research and environmental management. Obtaining spatially continuous information from ground observations is challenging due to the wide variety of factors that affect classical interpolation methods. While geostatistical methods have produced noteworthy results, they generally rely on important assumptions and strongly depend on the availability of observed data. In turn, satellite‐based or model‐based gridded images generally represent the global spatial structure of environmental variables but are subject to bias. With the objective of exploiting the benefits of both sources of information, we propose a new mathematical formulation to merge observed data with gridded images of environmental variables using partial differential equations in a variational setting. With a convenient functional, formed as the sum of two competing terms, two simultaneous goals are achieved: to improve the description of the spatial structure in maps generated by simple deterministic interpolation methods and to increase the reliability of satellite‐based or model‐based images. Either satellite‐based or model‐based information is included in a regularity term to provide the global spatial structure, while in situ data are included in a fidelity term. The resulting maps can be considered a merging of interpolated in situ data with satellite or model imagery. The method is first evaluated using simulated images generated by geostatistical simulation and then applied to actual temperature and precipitation data in selected regions in the Tropical Andes. The results indicate that the method is capable of generating realistic maps while performing well in terms of validation. We propose a variational formulation to merge observed data with gridded images of environmental variablesThe resulting maps can be considered a merging of interpolated in situ data with the spatial structure of either satellite or model imageryThe formulation is capable of generating realistic maps in terms of spatial patterns while conforming well to in situ data

This paper presents a framework for modeling failure in quasi-brittle geomaterials under different loading conditions. A micromechanics-based model is proposed in which the field variables are linked to physical mechanisms at the microcrack level: damage is related to the growth of microcracks, while plasticity is related to the frictional sliding of closed microcracks. Consequently, the hardening/softening functions and parameters entering the free energy follow from the definition of a single degradation function and the elastic material properties. The evolution of opening microcracks in tension leads to brittle behavior and mode I fracture, while the evolution of closed microcracks under frictional sliding in compression/shear leads to ductile behavior and mode II fracture. Frictional sliding is endowed with a non-associative law, a crucial aspect of the model that considers the effect of dilation and allows for realistic material responses with non-vanishing frictional energy dissipation. Despite the non-associative law, a variationally consistent formulation is presented using notions of energy balance and stability, following the energetic formulation for rate-independent systems. The material response of the model is first described, followed by the numerical implementation procedure and several benchmark finite element simulations. The results highlight the ability of the model to describe tensile, shear, and mixed-mode fracture, as well as responses with brittle-to-ductile transition. A key result is that, by virtue of the micromechanical arguments, realistic failure modes can be captured, without resorting to the usual heuristic modifications considered in the phase-field literature. The numerical results are thoroughly discussed with reference to previous numerical studies, experimental evidence, and analytical fracture criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]