Particle flow study on strength and meso-mechanism of Brazilian splitting test for jointed rock mass

Abstract

A discrete element method (DEM) called particle flow code (PFC2D) was used to construct a model for Brazilian disc splitting test in the present study. Based on the experimental results of intact Brazilian disc of rock-like material, a set of micro-parameters in PFC2D that reflected the macro-mechanical behavior of rock-like materials were obtained. And then PFC2D was used to simulate Brazilian splitting test for jointed rock mass specimens and specimen containing a central straight notch. The effect of joint angle and notch angle on the tensile strength and failure mode of jointed rock specimens was detailed analyzed. In order to reveal the meso-mechanical mechanism of crack coalescence, displacement trend lines were applied to analyze the displacement evolution during the crack initiation and propagation. The investigated conclusions can be described as follows. (1) The tensile strength of jointed rock mass disc specimen is dependent to the joint angle. As the joint angle increases, the tensile strength of jointed rock specimen takes on a nonlinear variance. (2) The tensile strength of jointed rock mass disc specimen containing a central straight notch distributes as a function of both joint angle and notch angle. (3) Three major failure modes, i.e., pure tensile failure, shear failure and mixed tension and shear failure mode are observed in jointed rock mass disc specimens under Brazilian test. (4) The notch angle and joint angle play important roles on crack initiation and propagation characteristics of jointed rock mass disc specimen containing a central straight notch under Brazilian test.