%L eprints2060
%D 2009
%X In this study, a generalized Barenblatt and Botvina dimensional analysis approach to fatigue crack growth is proposed in order to highlight and explain the deviations from the classical power-law equations used to characterize the fatigue behaviour of quasi-brittle materials. According to this theoretical approach, the microstructural-size (related to the volumetric content of fibres in fibre-reinforced concrete), the crack-size, and the size-scale effects on the Paris? law and the W?hler equation are presented within a unified mathematical framework. Relevant experimental results taken from the literature are used to confirm the theoretical trends and to determine the values of the incomplete self-similarity exponents. All these information are expected to be useful for the design of experiments, since the role of the different dimensionless numbers governing the phenomenon of fatigue is herein elucidated.
%A Marco Paggi
%A Giuseppe Ferro
%K Fatigue; Quasi-brittle materials; Fibre-reinforced concrete; Dimensional analysis; Incomplete selfsimilarity
%B Atti del XX Convegno Nazionale del Gruppo Italiano Frattura
%P 33-43
%T Fatigue of quasi-brittle materials: a unified interpretation of microstructural size, crack size and size-scale effects
%I Gruppo Italiano Frattura
%O XX Convegno Nazionale del Gruppo Italiano Frattura, Torino, Italy, 2009
-

This paper has been awarded the prize "Premio Giovani Autori IGF 2009"