An elasto-plastic damage model for plain concrete subjected to high temperatures

A computational model allowing for the thermo-mechanical analysis of concrete structures at high temperatures by means of the finite element method is presented. The degradation of a part of the mechanical properties due to temperature is given through a diffused thermal damage model. Further, the model includes transient creep interaction with localized mechanical damage due to cracking. A comparison is made between experimental tests performed by some authors on concrete specimens at high temperatures and the numerical results obtained from the model presented. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.