The “Orthotropic | Anisotropic Damage” material model combines plastic and fracture mechanics approaches, enabling specialized modeling of brittle materials with anisotropic properties, such as timber or fiber-reinforced concrete.
During plastic deformation of the material, the stresses remain constant. A redistribution of stresses occurs depending on the stiffnesses present in the individual directions. The elastic range corresponds to the “Orthotropic | Linear Elastic (Solid)” material model. Once the fractional mechanical properties are reached, a prediction of the resulting cracks is made.
The crack analysis is performed via a smeared crack using the finite element method. When a failure criterion is met, the corresponding stiffness is progressively reduced until it approaches zero. This allows for the precise determination of whether a crack forms and how it propagates.
