Nonlinear elastic analysis of concrete beams based on the Smeared Crack Approach

In the present study, an analysis of plain and reinforced concrete beams under monotonic loading was made based on the Fixed Smeared Crack approach. The objectives of this research were to analyze the nonlinear behavior of the selected cases of analysis and to propose an alternative and simple model for the analysis of beams under service loadings, by means of Committee 435 of the American Concrete Institute. A brittle model for concrete and a linear-elastic behavior for steel reinforcement bars were considered. Results are presented through force-displacement curves and the sequence of cracking propagation. Also, a comparison of calculated instantaneous deflections of simply supported beams was made between the proposed model and other researches. It was verified that the proposed algorithm can predict adequately the cracking process and the deflections of beams subjected to service loadings, taking into account experimental results from other authors.