Development of a Concrete Unit Cell

Abstract

This paper describes the development of a unit cell for concrete structures. Executing a multiscale analysis procedure using the theory of homogenization requires solving a periodic unit cell problem of the material in order to evaluate the material macroscopic properties. The presented research answers that need by creating a concrete unit cell through using the concrete paste generic information (i.e., percentage of aggregate in the concrete and the aggregate distribution). The presented algorithm manipulates the percentage of the aggregate weight and distribution in order to create a finite element unit cell model of the concrete to be used in a multiscale analysis of concrete structures. This algorithm adjusts the finite element meshing with respect to the physical unit cell size, creates virtual sieves according to adjusted probability density functions, transforms the aggregate volumes into a digitized discrete model of spheres, places the spheres using the random sampling principle of the Monte Carlo simulation method in a periodic manner, and constructs a finite element input file of the concrete unit cell appropriate for running a multiscale analysis using the theory of homogenization.