Modelling of the fracture toughness anisotropy in fiber reinforced concrete

Steel fiber reinforced concrete is potentially very promising material with unique properties, which currently is widely used in some applications, such as floors and concrete pavements. However, lack of robust and reliable models of fiber reinforced concrete fracture limits its application as structural material. In this work a numerical model is proposed for predicting the crack growth in fiber reinforced concrete. The mixing of the steel fibers with the concrete usually creates nonuniform fibers distribution with more fibers oriented in horizontal direction, than in vertical. Simple numerical models of fiber reinforced concrete require a priori knowledge of the crack growth direction in …