Assessing the flow characteristics of self-compacting concrete via numerical simulations of flow tests

Due to the demand for highly durable concrete structures, Self-Compacting Concrete (SCC) with its unique characteristics (flow-ability, passing ability and stability) has been developed, and is increasingly replacing Vibrated Concrete (VC) in various structural applications. SCC, which is characterised in its fresh state by high flow-ability and rheological stability, has excellent applicability for structural elements with complicated shapes and congested reinforcement. An incompressible mesh-less Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) methodology has been implemented in this simulation and a suitable Bingham-type constitutive model has been coupled with the Lagrangian momentum and continuity equations to model the flow of SCC in its fresh state. The aim of this numerical simulation was to investigate the capabilities of the SPH methodology in predicting the flow of SCC mixes. To confirm that a mix flows homogeneously, the distribution of large coarse aggregates in the mixes has also been simulated