Damage modeling of bituminous mixtures considering mixture microstructure, viscoelasticity, and cohesive zone fracture

This paper describes the development and application of a computational modeling approach incorporated with pertinent laboratory testing that can be used to predict fracture damage performance of bituminous paving mixtures. In the model, material viscoelasticity, mixture microstructure, and cohesive zone fracture properties are implemented within a finite element method, which is intended to simulate nonlinear-inelastic microscale fracture and its propagation to complete failure in bituminous mixtures. The model is applied to different materials, and the resulting model simulations are compared to experimental results for model validation. With some limitations and technical issues to be overcome in the future, the model presented herein clearly demonstrates several advancements based on its features accounting for material viscoelasticity, heterogeneity, and cohesive zone fracture. Potentially, the model can provide significant savings in time and costs and can also be used to improve currently available design analysis tools.