TY - JOUR
T1 - Numerical study of the aggregate contact effect on the complex modulus of asphalt concrete
AU - Tan, Zhifei
AU - Leng, Zhen
AU - Jiang, Jiwang
AU - Cao, Peng
AU - Jelagin, Denis
AU - Li, Gaoyang
AU - Sreeram, Anand
N1 - Funding Information:
This study is sponsored by the Hong Kong Research Grant Council General Research Fund (Project Number: 15209920 ), the Innovation and Technology Fund - Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Cooperation Funding Scheme ( GHP/116/18GD ), and the Hong Kong Asphalt (Green) Limited (PolyU Project ID P0036391). We would like to thank K. Wah Asphalt Limited in Hong Kong for providing the experimental materials.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors
PY - 2022/1
Y1 - 2022/1
N2 - Asphalt concrete (AC) is a composite material consisting of binder, aggregates and air voids. The quantitative effect of aggregate-to-aggregate contact on the mechanical performance of AC is an important and complex issue, which has not been fully understood yet. To fill this gap, this study aims to characterize the aggregate contacts in AC and evaluate their effects on the viscoelastic behavior of AC through micromechanical finite element (FE) modeling. To this end, 3D microstructural models were generated through digital image processing (DIP) method and aggregate contacts were captured in the model via contact zone (CZ) elements. A CZ model was proposed and verified by a parametric study to identify the viscoelastic properties of CZ elements, while the viscoelastic properties of matrix phase were determined through laboratory tests. Steady-state dynamic (SSD) analysis was then conducted to investigate the macro-scale viscoelastic response of AC. It was found that the proposed modeling approach captures the measured response accurately. Accounting for aggregate contacts results in higher predicted AC dynamic moduli and lower phase angles, thus improving the agreement between modeling and experimental results. The numerical model developed in this study provides a promising approach for investigating the effect of aggregate contacts on the mechanical performance of AC.
AB - Asphalt concrete (AC) is a composite material consisting of binder, aggregates and air voids. The quantitative effect of aggregate-to-aggregate contact on the mechanical performance of AC is an important and complex issue, which has not been fully understood yet. To fill this gap, this study aims to characterize the aggregate contacts in AC and evaluate their effects on the viscoelastic behavior of AC through micromechanical finite element (FE) modeling. To this end, 3D microstructural models were generated through digital image processing (DIP) method and aggregate contacts were captured in the model via contact zone (CZ) elements. A CZ model was proposed and verified by a parametric study to identify the viscoelastic properties of CZ elements, while the viscoelastic properties of matrix phase were determined through laboratory tests. Steady-state dynamic (SSD) analysis was then conducted to investigate the macro-scale viscoelastic response of AC. It was found that the proposed modeling approach captures the measured response accurately. Accounting for aggregate contacts results in higher predicted AC dynamic moduli and lower phase angles, thus improving the agreement between modeling and experimental results. The numerical model developed in this study provides a promising approach for investigating the effect of aggregate contacts on the mechanical performance of AC.
KW - Aggregate contacts
KW - Complex modulus
KW - Finite element analysis
KW - Steady-state dynamics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85121501518&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.matdes.2021.110342
DO - 10.1016/j.matdes.2021.110342
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85121501518
VL - 213
JO - International Journal of Materials in Engineering Applications
JF - International Journal of Materials in Engineering Applications
SN - 0264-1275
M1 - 110342
ER -