A Rate Independent Cohesive Zone Model for Modeling Failure in Quasi-Brittle Materials

Computational modeling of failure in quasi-brittle materials at various length scales is important. In this work we present a rate independent cohesive zone model for modeling failure in quasi-brittle materials. The proposed model can simulate cracking, slipping, and crushing of planes through a traction-separation law. A single surface hyperbolic failure criterion, which naturally comes as a direct extension of Coulomb friction criterion with cut-off in tension and cap-off in compression, has been developed. A Euler backward integration scheme together with a global-local Newton solver compatible with a substepping strategy has been used in numerical computations. The proposed model is then used for modeling of shear wall panels. The numerical results obtained are validated by comparing them with experimental results available in literatures.