Modeling of Combined Thermal and Mechanical Action in Concrete

Abstract

To describe the response of concrete under combined thermal and mechanical action it is necessary to abandon the usual assumption that thermal strain and mechanical strain can be treated as mutually independent, additive components. A generalized model which accounts for the thermomechanical interaction observed in tests is discussed. The basic feature of the formulation is that the thermal strain rate is considered to be a function of both rate of temperature change and the current state of stress. The problems dealt with in the paper are of great practical interest in the design of concrete structures exposed to severe thermal loading.