DEM investigation of the creep behavior of methane hydrate-bearing sand

Abstract

In this paper, the creep behavior of cemented methane hydrate-bearing sand is studied using discrete element model. Methane hydrate is modeled as contact bonds between particles, and the time-dependent bond strength method is adopted to simulate the creep procedure. The simulation results are in good agreement with laboratory test results, i.e., the creep of methane hydrate-bearing sands exhibits deceleration and acceleration phase, and strain rate is larger with higher deviator stress levels. Furthermore, the micro evolutions including bond breakage and shear band formation are revealed with the DEM model.