Computational mechanics has proven to be a useful method to understand and assess the mechanical behaviour and main degradation mechanisms of Porous Friction Courses (PFC) at the microstructural level. However, a common limitation when preparing these models is the difficulty to achieve realistic microstructures. The ideal model to evaluate the mechanical behaviour and the degradation mechanisms of PFCs would use a three-dimensional (3D) geometry of the mixture with realistic aggregate shape, angularity, and gradation. However, these models are computationally expensive and typically related with numerical instabilities. This paper proposes a novel methodology to generate two-dimensional (2D) random PFC microstructures using gravimetric methods through Discrete Element Method (DEM) modelling. The proposed methodology was calibrated to generate coarse aggregates with realistic and controlled morphological properties. The produced 2D microstructures were implemented in the commercial Finite Element Method (FEM) software Abaqus® and, after coating the particles with asphalt mortar, they were used to verify that the microstructures were able to reproduce the mechanical response –measured through the dynamic axial modulus– of an actual PFC mixture tested in the laboratory. The results show that the proposed methodology is able to produce microstructures with the same dynamic modulus than an actual PFC mixture at different loading frequencies. Among other applications, this methodology could be used to estimate the mechanical properties of PFC mixtures or to assess the expected performance and durability of a specific PFC under realistic field conditions.

计算力学已被证明是一种在微观结构水平上理解和评估多孔摩擦过程 (PFC) 的力学行为和主要退化机制的有用方法。然而，在准备这些模型时，一个常见的限制是难以实现真实的微观结构。评估 PFC 的机械行为和降解机制的理想模型将使用具有真实聚集体形状、棱角和渐变的混合物的三维 (3D) 几何形状。然而，这些模型的计算成本很高，并且通常与数值不稳定性有关。本文提出了一种通过离散元方法 (DEM) 建模使用重量法生成二维 (2D) 随机 PFC 微结构的新方法。所提出的方法经过校准以生成具有现实和受控形态特性的粗骨料。生成的二维微结构在商业有限元方法 (FEM) 软件 Abaqus® 中实施，并在用沥青砂浆涂覆颗粒后，用于验证微结构能够再现机械响应——通过动态轴向模量测量– 在实验室测试的实际 PFC 混合物。结果表明，所提出的方法能够在不同的加载频率下产生具有与实际 PFC 混合物相同的动态模量的微结构。在其他应用中，