Strain-gradient vs damage-gradient regularizations of softening damage models
Local damage models with softening needs localization limiters to preserve the mathematical
and physical consistency. In this paper we compare the properties of strain-gradient and
damage-gradient regularizations. Gradient-damage models introduce a quadratic dependency
of the dissipated energy on the gradient of the damage field and are nowadays extensively used
as phase-field approximation of brittle fracture. Their key feature is to provide a smeared
approximation of a crack as a band of localised damage with a finite energy dissipation per