Um gerador de amostras virtuais de misturas asfálticas :desenvolvimento e aplicabilidade em simulações microestruturais

Abstract

Asphalt mixtures are composite materials where particles with varied dimensions are dispersed in a matrix composed of binder, fine and coarse aggregates, voids and additives. Nowadays, several laboratory tests are necessary to understand and control the asphalt mixture quality, however, the microstructural interactions are not so readily accessed in the laboratory. In this sense, this work sought the development of a virtual asphaltic sample generator, capable of generating representative asphalt mixture microstructures. The developed generator uses real aggregates images obtained through digital image sampling. Several virtual samples were generated and used in finite element simulations prepared to replicate real laboratory testing, such as dynamic module and fracture. Simulation results were compared to laboratory data. Results indicated a good agreement between virtual and real asphalt samples, indicating the developed generator has the potential to become a good tool for the analysis and design of asphalt mixtures.