Application of the J-Integral and Digital Image Correlation (DIC) to Determination of Multiple Crack Propagation Law of UHPC under Flexural Cyclic Loading

This study investigated the fatigue crack propagation behavior of ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) incorporated with different steel fiber lengths of 6, 13, and 20 mm under flexural cyclic loading, based on the Paris law and nonlinear fracture mechanics. In addition, multiple crack covering areas and fatigue J-integral amplitudes were employed to quantitatively evaluate the fatigue crack propagation rate and predicate the fatigue life of the UHPC during the steady development stage. The results indicated that the maximum crack opening displacement (COD) values were 0.312, 0.673, and 1.265 mm and the minimum crack growth rates were −3.05, −4.48 and −4.62 for SF6, SF13, and SF20, respectively. The critical crack length was approximately 65 mm for UHPC specimens containing different fiber length at a given fiber volume fraction (2.0%), indicating that the critical crack length was simply related to the fiber length. Interestingly, when the fatigue crack area of all the tested series reached approximately 35 mm2, fracture failure occurred. There were very small predictions between the actual tested and predicated fatigue lives, all less than 7.21%. Hence, it was reasonable to predict the fatigue life of the UHPC based on the J-integral according to the DIC technique.