Element-free Galerkin simulations of concrete failure in dynamic uniaxial tension test

Dynamic tensile failure of concrete due to cracking is simulated using a ne w class of numerical methods, referred to as mesh-free methods, that are fr ee of the traditional finite-element node-and-element data structure and ar e thus well suited to modeling the propagation of isolated tensile cracks. The results from a series of numerical simulations are compared with corres ponding results from well-defined laboratory experiments involving the fail ure of concrete. Analysis of the numerical results, and their comparisons t o the laboratory measurements, provide some insight into the subtleties in the experimental strain histories and improve understanding of the dynamic tensile failure of concrete.