Simulation of damage evolution and crack propagation in three-point bending pre-cracked asphalt mixture beam

• The damage evolution and crack propagation of asphalt mixture are simulated.
• Asphalt mastic in fracture processes is described by the damage constitutive model.
• The heterogeneous asphalt mixture models are created with a parameterization method.
• Effects of pre-crack location and aggregate distribution are evaluated.

A numerical simulation framework is proposed to analyze damage evolution and crack propagation behaviors of heterogeneous asphalt mixture under low temperature. In this framework, asphalt mixture is considered as a two-phase composite consisting of coarse aggregates and asphalt mastic (namely a mix of fine aggregates and asphalt binder). The heterogeneous and random geometrical models of asphalt mixture are created with the parameterization method and the physical degeneration of asphalt mastic in fracture processes is characterized with the damage constitutive model with some experimentally determined parameters. The framework is validated by good agreement between the predictions and the experiments in crack path. Finally, the effects of crack location and coarse aggregate distribution on crack propagation and damage evolution in a pre-cracked three-point bending asphalt mixture beam are evaluated.