Mesoscale fracture simulation of recycled aggregate concrete under uniaxial compression based on cohesive zone model

It is important to clarify the uniaxial compressive mechanical properties and fracture mechanism of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) from a mesoscale perspective for its further application in engineering. In this study, the cohesive zone model (CZM) based on the Benzeggagh–Kenane (B–K) criterion was used to simulate the RAC's complex fracture behavior. Meanwhile, the effects of cohesive element parameters and mechanical properties of mesoscale components on macroscopic mechanical properties and damage modes of RAC were investigated. The results show that the CZM based on the B–K criterion can be used to characterize the whole fracture process of RAC. The RAC's compressive strength has an exponential relationship with the shear strengths of the mortars as well as the ITZs and is quadratically related to the logarithm of cohesive element stiffness. The RAC's damage morphology is more sensitive to the change of element stiffness, Mode II fracture energy and hybrid fracture energy ratio. •The cohesive zone model is used to analyze the RAC's uniaxial compression process.•Establishing the correlation between the mesoscale damage and macroscopic force response of RAC.•The RAC's mechanical response is more sensitive to Mode II fracture energy under compression.•The new mortar's shear strength has the greatest influence on the RAC's mechanical properties.