Numerical Simulation of Crack Development in Reinforced Concrete Beam with Different Shear Span Ratios

The periodically distributed fracture spacing phenomenon exists in the failure process of the pure bending region of the reinforced concrete beam. A numerical code RFPA3D (3D Realistic Failure Process Analysis) is used to investigate the crack distribution rule of reinforced concrete beam with different shear span ratios. The displacement-controlled loading scheme was used to simulate the complete failure process of reinforced concrete beam. The numerical simulation results were agreed well with the theoretical analysis and experiment observations. The study is focused on the failure process of the reinforced concrete beam and the effects of the shear span ratio on the failure mode.