Abaqus Concrete Structure Modeling | Practical Examples (Part 1)

Abaqus Concrete structure Modeling | Practical Examples (Part 1)

If you are a researcher, student, university professor, or  Engineer in the company in the field of civil engineering, Abaqus concrete structure modeling package in simulating concrete and structural Engineering is the best selection.
The package includes 5 workshops on topics such as concrete, beam-column structures, composites, steel rebars, Ultra-High-Performance-Fiber-Reinforcement Concrete columns, CFRP bars, hollow-core square reinforced concrete columns wrapped, damaged concrete beams, High Strength Concrete(HSC),ECC/Concrete Composite Beam-Column Joints, circular concrete-encased concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) stub columns, and etc.

You can see the syllabus and details of this project below or the drop-down menu on the right side of this product page.

    It will guide you going from the basics up to complex simulation techniques. It is very fluid, and comprehensive and every single detail is explained.

   Every workshop goes straight to the point, without any worthless piece of content. You will learn what you need at every stage and you will be putting it into practice from the very first day.

       Most importantly, we support you as you learn in this course. You can contact our experts to ask your questions and enjoy our modelling and simulations step-by-step support.

Workshop 1: Simulation of Ultra-High-Performance-Fiber-Reinforcement Concrete column in cyclic loading

This workshop covers the simulation of cyclic loading on an Ultra-High-Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (UHPFRC) column in Abaqus. The column is modeled as a three-dimensional solid structure.

UHPFRC is a specialized concrete made from Portland cement, reactive admixtures, fine aggregates, inert additives, superplasticizers, and surface-treated steel fibers. The optimized grading of its components results in a high packing density, providing exceptional strength, ductility, and durability. While high-strength cement-based materials typically fail suddenly after cracking, the addition of fibers delays the formation of interconnected microcracks and enhances the material’s toughness through fiber-matrix interactions. This behavior gives UHPFRC a pseudo-strain-hardening response post-cracking, followed by strain localization at peak load and a gradual loss of strength until failure. The material’s inelastic behavior—such as matrix cracking, fiber debonding, and slip—contributes to its high ductility and energy absorption capacity.

In this workshop, the Concrete Damaged Plasticity model is used to represent UHPFRC under cyclic loading. Material properties are derived from reference studies. The analysis is performed using a general static step with convergence modifications. To generate the hysteresis diagram, displacement and reaction force data are collected. The cyclic load is applied to the top surface of the column following a predefined amplitude, while the bottom surface is fixed. A fine mesh is necessary to ensure accurate results.

After the simulation, results such as stress distribution, strain evolution, and the hysteresis diagram will be available.

Workshop 2: Finite element simulation of Ultra-High-Performance Concrete beam-column joint in cyclic loading

This workshop examines the simulation of an Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) beam-column joint subjected to cyclic loading in Abaqus. The UHPC beam-column joint is modeled as a three-dimensional solid part, while the steel bars and strips are represented as three-dimensional wire parts.

UHPC is an advanced concrete technology known for its exceptional strength in compression and tension, high ductility, and durability. In this study, UHPC material properties are used to model the beam-column behavior under cyclic loading. The Concrete Damaged Plasticity (CDP) model requires separate compression and tensile data, while the elastic-plastic material model is applied to the steel bars and strips.

To simulate cyclic loading, a general step with adjustments in the divergence model is used, and the necessary outputs are requested to generate the hysteresis diagram in the visualization. The embedded region constraint is applied to ensure proper interaction between the steel bars, strips, and the concrete host. Fixed boundary conditions are assigned to both the top and bottom surfaces of the column, while cyclic displacement is applied to the free end of the beam following a predefined protocol. A fine mesh is essential to obtain accurate results.

After the simulation, results such as stress, strain, displacement, and the hysteresis diagram will be available.

Workshop 3: Dynamic compression test of in concrete column reinforced with CFRP bars

This workshop focuses on the dynamic compression test simulation of a concrete column reinforced with CFRP bars in Abaqus. The concrete column and CFRP bars are both modeled as three-dimensional solid parts, while two rigid bodies—a supporter and a hydraulic jack—are included in the setup.

To accurately represent the behavior of concrete and account for its damage, the Concrete Damaged Plasticity (CDP) model is used. This continuum-based plasticity model considers tensile cracking and compressive crushing as the primary failure mechanisms. The CFRP bars are modeled using an elastic engineering constants approach.

A dynamic explicit step is employed to capture failure zones and determine the maximum force capacity of the column. The explicit solver is preferred over a static solver due to the significant convergence issues that occur in this type of analysis. A general contact algorithm is applied to manage all interactions within the contact domain, with friction defined as a contact property. The interaction between the CFRP bars and concrete is assumed to be ideal (perfect contact). Boundary conditions include a fixed constraint on the bottom rigid body, while displacement is applied to the top. A fine mesh is essential for achieving accurate results.

After completing the simulation, results such as stress distribution, plastic strain, tensile and compression damage, and the force-displacement diagram are available.