Research on Fractal Characteristics and Energy Dissipation of Concrete Suffered Freeze-Thaw Cycle Action and Impact Loading

In order to study the fractal characteristics and energy dissipation of concrete suffered freeze-thaw cycle actions and impact loading, C35 concrete was taken as the research object in this paper, and freeze-thaw cycle tests were carried out with a freeze-thaw range of −20 °C~20 °C and a freeze-thaw frequency of 0~50 times. The degradation characteristics of concrete material and the variation rules of basic physical parameters under various freeze-thaw cycle conditions were obtained consequently. By using the SHPB (separated Hopkinson pressure bar) test device, impact compression tests of concrete specimens under different freeze-thaw cycle actions were developed, then the process of impact crushing and the mechanism of damage evolution were analyzed. Based on the screening statistical method and the fractal theory, the scale-mass distribution rules and fractal dimension characteristics of crushing blocks are investigated. Furthermore, the absorption energy, fracture energy and block kinetic energy of concrete under different conditions were calculated according to the energy dissipation principle of SHPB test. The relationship between the energy consumption density and the fractal dimension of fragments was established, and the coupling effect mechanism of freeze-thaw cycle action and strain rate effect on the fractal characteristics and energy consumption was revealed additionally. The research results show that the concrete under different freeze-thaw cycle conditions and impact loading speeds has fractal properties from the microscopic damage to the macroscopic fracture. The energy dissipation is intrinsically related to the fractal characteristics, and the energy consumption density increases with the increase of the fractal dimension under a certain freeze-thaw cycle condition. When at a certain loading speed, with the growth of freeze-thaw cycles, the energy consumption density reduces under the same fractal dimension, while the fractal dimension improves under the same energy consumption density.