The effects of the rock bridge ligament angle and the confinement on crack coalescence in rock bridges: An experimental study and discrete element method

Abstract

The present article investigates the influences of the rock bridge ligament angle, β, and the confinement on crack coalescence patterns by conducting laboratory and numerical tests on rock-like specimens. Laboratory tests show that no coalescence in the rock bridge occurred for low β. With an increase of β, tensile-shear coalescence and tensile coalescences subsequently occurred. In addition, the increase in the confinement first promoted shear coalescence and then restrained crack coalescence for low β, whereas the tensile coalescence was restrained by the increase in confinement for high β. The numerical results corroborate the laboratory tests in the coalescence patterns. In addition, the numerical study shows that tensile and shear cracks subsequently initiated near crack tips because of the concentrated tensile and shear stresses, respectively. Regarding the influence of β on crack coalescence, tensile or shear stress failed to concentrate in rock bridges for low β. Therefore, the cracks failed to coalesce, whereas with the increase in β, tensile and shear stress concentrations occurred in the bridge and led to either tensile shear or tensile coalescence. Regarding the influence of confinement on crack coalescence, the increase in confinement restrained the tensile stress concentrations and further hindered tensile crack coalescence in rock bridges for high values of β.