Effect of hydrate saturation on the shear bands of methane hydrate-bearing sediments based on the DEM simulation

Abstract

As the most important strategic resource, Methane hydrate (MH) that is an ice-like clathrate crystalline compound has been paid more and more attention by more and more scientists and researchers. In order to investigate mechanical behaviors and the mechanism of the progressive failure of methane hydrate-bearing sediments, in this paper, a new sample preparation technique is developed to better simulate the microstructure of hydrate-bearing sediments. Then a series of biaxial compression tests are conducted to investigate the mechanical behaviors and strain localization of hydrate-bearing sediments. The results show that as methane hydrate saturation increases, the strength and stiffness of the methane hydrate-bearing sediments increase and the trend of volumetric dilation is becoming more and more obvious. Methane hydrate saturation has a great influence on the properties of shear bands.