Static and fatigue fracture mechanics properties of self-compacting concrete using three-point bending tests and wedge-splitting tests

• An altered outcome is found from the static 3PBT, compared to the WST.
• In the static tests, SCC1 is the most brittle concrete type and VC the toughest.
• SCC2 has the highest overall fatigue resistance in the dynamic 3PBTs.
• VC can sustain the most load cycles to failure in the dynamic WSTs.
• The numerically determined fracture parameters differ from the experimental ones.

This paper compares the results of static and dynamic three-point bending tests and wedge-splitting tests on specimens, made from VC (vibrated concrete) and two types of SCC (self-compacting concrete). Different fracture parameters are derived from the experimentally obtained load–CMOD curves (load versus crack mouth opening displacement) and the softening curve is extracted, using inverse analysis. The outcome depends on the test setup, but SCC with equal compressive strength compared to VC, is generally the most brittle concrete type and performs worst in the cyclic experiments, whereas VC is the toughest and has the best fatigue resistance.