Towards understanding the influence of porosity on mechanical and fracture behaviour of quasi-brittle materials: experiments and modelling

mm were cast and loaded under four-point bending to obtain the mechanical characteristics of each porosity level. The elastic modulus and flexural strength are found to decrease with increased porosity. Fractography studies have been undertaken to identify the role of the pores on the fracture path. Based on the known porosity, a 3D model of each microstructure has been built and the deformation and fracture was computed using a lattice-based multi-scale finite element model. This model predicted similar trends as the experimental results and was able to quantify the fractured sites. The results from this model material experimental data and the lattice model predictions are discussed with respect to the role of porosity on the deformation and fracture of quasi-brittle materials.