A Finite Element-Discrete Element Approach for the Analysis of the Venice Trans-Lagoon Railway Bridge

Abstract

In this paper, the feasibility of the utilization of a combined finite element/discrete element (FE-DE) approach to investigate the behavior of masonry arch bridges is proposed. Attention is paid to the assessment of the load carrying capacity by means of a suitable coupled FE-DE two-dimensional approach. This paper outlines the fields and limits of applicability of the FE-DE method to the study of masonry arch bridges. The main contribution is to evaluate the applicability of FE-DE, in particular its reliability to describe the nonlinear behavior of masonry arch bridges under increasing static loads, to catch kinematic failure mechanisms and collapse load multipliers, as well as to evaluate the role played by the backfill.A discussion on a possible approach to FE-DE modelling of the Venice transLagoon masonry arch bridge is proposed. With such a purpose, a series of parametric analyses has been conducted in order to evaluate the influence of the different parameters involved on the behavior of the bridges. Pushover analyses have been performed to investigate the nonlinear behavior up to the collapse and up to a clear formation of a failure mechanism in the model.

In plane loaded masonry walls: DEM and FEM/DEM models. A critical review

“…These models, initially developed in the field of geo-mechanics, can properly represent the behavior of historical masonry, which could be considered as made of dry stone blocks exhibiting a periodic pattern. FEM/DEM allows to further extend the study to both linear and nonlinear masonry behavior, it has been successfully adopted to study the behavior of historical masonry construction [17][18][19]30,31,38].…”

“…Considering DEMs having elements subdivided into FEs, the resulting model is often called FEM/DEM [13,14,15,16]. In the field of masonry structures, this code has already been used for determining ultimate loads of masonry panels and arches [17,18]. Moreover, similar FEM/DEM codes have been recently introduced and applied to the field of masonry structures in-plane loaded by static and dynamic actions [19,20].…”

Discrete and Continuous Approaches for the Failure Analysis of Masonry Structures Subjected to Settlements

“…The FEM/DEM approach adopted here has been successfully adopted for masonry structures by some of the authors (Reccia et al, 2012(Reccia et al, , 2016(Reccia et al, , 2018Baraldi et al, 2013Baraldi et al, , 2015bBaraldi et al, , 2018Baraldi et al, , 2019Pepe et al, 2019a,b) and by other research groups (Smoljanović et al, 2013(Smoljanović et al, , 2015(Smoljanović et al, , 2017.…”

A Multiscale/Multidomain Model for the Failure Analysis of Masonry Walls: A Validation With a Combined Fem/Dem Approach

“…In the normal direction, body impenetrability is enforced using a penalty method (Munjiza and Andrews, 2000), while in the tangential direction, discontinuity frictional behavior is simulated by a Coulomb-type friction law (Mahabadi et al, 2012). The FEM/DEM approach here adopted was originally introduced in soil mechanics problems (Munjiza et al, 1995); however, it has been successfully extended to the field of masonry structures by some of the authors (Baraldi et al, 2013(Baraldi et al, , 2015b(Baraldi et al, , 2018bReccia et al, 2012Reccia et al, , 2016 and by other research groups (Miglietta et al, 2016(Miglietta et al, , 2017Smoljanović et al, 2013Smoljanović et al, , 2015Smoljanović et al, , 2017.…”