Abstract
Abstract Research on the mechanical behaviour of rock masses with multiple joints has become a popular topic and has practical applications in natural slope stability. This paper aims to clarify the influence of joint geometry, joint orientation and joint connectivity ratio on the mechanical behaviour of rock specimens containing two pre-existing joints. Triaxial compression tests were conducted under various confining pressures to simulate the variation in external conditions. An exponential criterion was used to describe the relationship between the axial stress and confining pressure. The experimental crack propagation was explored by varying the joint orientation, joint connectivity ratio and confining pressure. The structural plane with a greater angle of inclination controlled the failure of the rock sample. Two failure patterns were observed under the loading conditions: shear failure and mixed failure. The failure surface trajectory presented similar deviations with the increase in joint inclination angle, joint connectivity ratio and confining pressure, which also accelerates the transition from mixed failure to shear failure. The experimental results highlight the significance of elucidating the influence of structural planes in practical engineering to predict the stability of natural slopes.
Highlights
Due to the high geostress and high-altitude environment in the mountainous and hilly areas of Western China, rock collapse, landslides and mudslides are typical geological disasters
The behaviour of jointed rock masses in this area is closely related to the stability of rock engineering, such as hydropower engineering, underground tunnel engineering and mining engineering (Li et al 2014)
We investigated the influence of joint geometry on the variation in strength and deformation during the experimental tests
Summary
Due to the high geostress and high-altitude environment in the mountainous and hilly areas of Western China, rock collapse, landslides and mudslides are typical geological disasters. A fairly large number of hydropower projects are under construction in the area. The behaviour of jointed rock masses in this area is closely related to the stability of rock engineering, such as hydropower engineering, underground tunnel engineering and mining engineering (Li et al 2014). The process of crack propagation in brittle rocks has attracted researchers’ attention (Park & Bobet 2010; Morgan et al 2013; Xue et al 2014). Based on research conducted over the last few decades, the numbers, angles and connectivity ratios of cracks have caused dramatic changes in crack initiation, propagation and coalescence
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