Stress Equilibrium Research Articles

CKAP4 in hepatocellular carcinoma: competitive RETREG1/FAM134B binding, reticulophagy regulation, and cancer progression

ABSTRACT RETREG1/FAM134B is known for its role as a reticulophagy receptor. Our previous study established that RETREG1 is upregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and contributes to disease progression by activating the AKT signaling pathway. However, the specific mechanisms underlying the elevated expression of RETREG1 in HCC remain unclear. This study unveils the interaction of RETREG1 with CKAP4 and TRIM21. We demonstrated that TRIM21 ubiquitinates RETREG1 at K247 and K252, facilitating its proteasomal degradation. Conversely, CKAP4 shields RETREG1 from degradation by competitively binding to it, revealing a novel post-translational modification mechanism for RETREG1. By modulating RETREG1 expression, CKAP4, and TRIM21 intricately regulate reticulophagy. Additionally, we observed that stress-induced TRIM21 upregulation mitigates the function of RETREG1 to restore ER stress equilibrium. The oncogenic potential of CKAP4 in HCC was demonstrated using various animal models. Clinical sample analyses suggested that CKAP4 is a potential biomarker for HCC prognosis and diagnosis. Abbreviation: AKT: thymoma viral proto-oncogene; aa: amino acid; bp: base pair; CHX: cycloheximide; co-IP: co-Immunoprecipitation; CQ: chloroquine; CKAP4: cytoskeleton-associated protein 4; DKK1: dickkopf WNT signaling pathway inhibitor 1; DUBs: deubiquitinating enzymes; EBSS: Earle’s balanced salt solution; EGFP: enhanced green fluorescent protein; ER: endoplasmic reticulum; GAPDH: glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; GFP: green fluorescent protein; HCC: hepatocellular carcinoma; HFD: high-fat diet; HiTV: hyperdynamic tail vein injection; IF: immunofluorescence; IHC: immunohistochemistry; IP-MS: immunoprecipitation-mass spectrometry; LIR: LC3-interacting region; mAbs: monoclonal antibodies; MAP1LC3B/LC3B: microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 beta; mCherry: monomeric cherry; oe: overexpression; PDX: patient-derived tumor xenograft; reticulophagy: endoplasmic reticulum selective autophagy; RETREG1: reticulophagy regulator 1; RHD: reticulon-homology domain; Tg: thapsigargin; Tm: tunicamycin; TRIM21: tripartite motif-containing 21; UB: ubiquitin; WT: wild-type.

Optimal mud pressure design using nonlinear failure criteria for wellbores in shaley sedimentary reservoir

AbstractWellbore drilling disturbs the equilibrium stress state in the rock mass, resulting in stress redistribution around the opening. Wellbore stability in the altered stress state is vital for engineering applications, as the wellbore instability results in cost overrun. Accurate estimation of rock mechanical properties, in‐situ stresses, and required mud pressure is crucial for safe drilling. If the mud pressure is lower than required, the shear failure of the rock takes place, and conversely, if the mud pressure is higher than the upper limit, tensile failure occurs. A strength criterion that can accurately predict the mud pressure may help significantly reduce non‐productive time and cost in well drilling. The commonly used Mogi‐Coulomb (MGC) failure criterion for estimating critical mud pressure neglects the few fundamental aspects of rock failure characteristics observed in the laboratory, such as nonlinear strength response in major‐minor principal stress space and prediction of multiple failure stress values near the triaxial axial extension boundary. The present study uses the Modified Mohr‐Coulomb true‐triaxial failure criterion (MMC_TT), which predicts the strength of rock better than the MGC in laboratory true‐triaxial tests to overcome the limitations. Moreover, based on the data from previously published five vertical wells in the Krishna‐Godavari basin (K‐G basin), an empirical relationship is proposed to obtain the strength parameters for the MMC_TT criterion for shaley sedimentary rocks as the existing correlations do not cater for the parameters required for MMC_TT criterion. The comparative study of the MMC_TT with MGC, Modified Mohr‐Coulomb triaxial, and Mohr‐Coulomb failure criteria, showed that for most of the K‐G basin wells, the MMC_TT criterion predicted close to the MGC. However, for well‐13, the MMC_TT criterion results are closer to the mud pressure used in actual drilling than the MGC.

RRFERV stabilizes TEAD1 expression to mediate nasopharyngeal cancer radiation resistance rendering tumor cells vulnerable to ferroptosis.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate various essential biological processes, including cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion. However, in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), the clinical significance and mechanisms of lncRNAs in malignant progression are unknown. RNA sequencing and bioinformatic analysis were used to determine the potential function of RRFERV (radiation-resistant but ferroptosis vulnerable), and its biological effects were investigated using in vitro and in vivo experiments. Western blotting, quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assays, and flow cytometry detected RRFERV expression. Ferroptosis and lipid peroxidation were added to evaluate the relationship between it and radiotherapy resistance. LncRNA-RRFERV was both highly expressed in NPC tissues and radiation-resistant cells. RRFERV is associated with poor clinical outcomes of NPC patients and stabilizes TEAD1 by competitive binding with microRNA-615-5p and microRNA-1293. RRFERV-TEAD1 signaling axis leads to malignant progression and radiotherapy resistance of NPC. Furthermore, we observed that NPC radiotherapy resistance cells exist in a fragile oxidative stress equilibrium, which makes them more sensitive to ferroptosis inducers. Surprisingly, we found that RRFERV-TEAD1 signaling axis also plays a key role in mediating the lipid peroxidation levels of NPC radiotherapy resistance cells through transcriptional activation of ACSL4/TFRC. RRFERV serves as an independent prognostic factor in NPC. During the malignant progression of NPC caused by high expression of RRFERV, ferroptosis can be induced to effectively kill cancer cells and reverse the radiotherapy resistance of NPC cells, suggesting a potential treatment approach for recurrent and refractory NPC.

Research on the Stability of Salt Cavern Hydrogen Storage and Natural Gas Storage under Long-Term Storage Conditions

The stability of salt cavern storage during prolonged operation is a crucial indicator of its safety. This study focuses on an operational underground gas storage facility, conducting comparative numerical simulations for the storage of natural gas and hydrogen. We investigated the evolution of stability for natural gas and hydrogen storage under long-term storage conditions. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) A new equation for stress equilibrium and constitutive relations are derived. (2) At the same storage pressure, the effective stress at the same position in the interlayer is greater for hydrogen storage compared to natural gas storage, signifying a higher level of danger. (3) At the same storage pressure, the displacement at the cavity top for hydrogen storage is greater than that for natural gas storage. The displacement difference between the two is greatest at 9 MPa, amounting to 0.026 m. (4) Due to hydrogen’s lower dynamic viscosity and higher permeability, the depth and extent of the plastic zones within the interlayers are greater compared to natural gas. When the storage pressure is 15 MPa, the depth of the plastic zone within the interlayer can be up to 2.1 m greater than when storing natural gas, occurring in the third interlayer from the top. These research findings may serve as a valuable reference for determining the operational parameters of on-site salt cavern hydrogen storage facilities.

Effect of geometric parameters on dynamic fracture toughness of compact tensile specimens

In this paper, the dynamic fracture toughness test and numerical simulation of CT specimens of 2A12-T4 aluminum alloy were carried out by using strain gauge method and finite element method based on Hopkinson tensile bar experiment device. The influence of crack transverse shape, loading hole size and dimension on the dynamic fracture performance of CT specimens was explained. The experimental and simulation results show that for CT specimens with different internal cracks, the time to reach stress equilibrium at the same tensile stress wave loading is roughly the same, while the time of initial cracking varies slightly. The dynamic fracture toughness obtained by concave arc-shaped internal crack and straight line-shaped internal crack is basically the same, while other changes in crack shape have a large impact. For CT specimens with straight line-shaped cracks, the position of the loading hole has a small effect on the dynamic fracture of the CT specimen under the same tensile stress wave. However, when the position of the loading hole is fixed, changing the diameter of the loading hole has a significant effect on the dynamic fracture toughness of the CT specimen.

Discontinuous deformation analysis for subsidence of fractured formations under seepage: A case study

With the growing prominence of recycling projects of groundwater, the attention towards subsidence concerns in geological formations is intensifying. However, due to the long evolutionary time and complex underground discontinuities, the deformation field and subsidence mechanism are difficult to obtain. To this concern, this study implemented the Hydro-Mechanical Coupled Discontinuous Deformation Analysis (HM-DDA) in a groundwater recycling project located at a goaf mining site. The method for establishing numerical stratigraphic models and determining the required numerical parameters is introduced. This contributes to the comprehensive reconstruction of changes in in-situ stress within the goaf area, encompassing the initial stress equilibrium state, as well as the processes of water pumping and injection. The results indicated that the water injection process mitigated stress concentrations at both ends of the goaf area. Specifically, a 30-m rise in water head resulted in a corresponding elevation of the ground surface by 3.94 ​cm.

Deep neural network homogenization of multiphysics behavior for periodic piezoelectric composites

We present a physically informed deep neural network homogenization theory for identifying homogenized moduli and local electromechanical fields of periodic piezoelectric composites. The theory employs a multi-network model to represent solutions to stress equilibrium and electrostatic partial differential equations in the inclusion and the matrix phases, leading to a more accurate depiction of field variables. Satisfaction of periodicity conditions for hexagonal and cubic symmetries are efficiently tackled using a series of sinusoidal functions with known periods and adjustable parameters. Additionally, the theory applies fully trainable weights to the collocation points. These trainable weights, trained concurrently with the neural network weights, compel the neural networks to enhance their performance when faced with large local stress/deformation gradients. The predictive capability of the proposed theory is illustrated by comparison with finite-element solutions for composites reinforced with unidirectional fiber, spherical particle, or weakened by an ellipsoidal cavity over a wide range of volume fractions.

On crack simulation by mixed‐dimensional coupling in GFEM with global‐local enrichments

AbstractA strategy that combines the global‐local version of the generalized finite element method (GFEM) with a mixed‐dimensional coupling iterative method is proposed to simulate two‐dimensional crack propagation in structures globally represented by Timoshenko‐frame models. The region of interest called the local problem, where the crack propagates, is represented by a 2D elasticity model, where a fine mesh of plane stress/strain elements and special enrichment functions are used to describe this phenomenon accurately. A model of Timoshenko‐frame elements simulates the overall behavior of the structure. A coarse mesh of plane stress/strain elements provides a bridge between these two representation scales. The mixed‐dimensional coupling method imposes displacement compatibility and stress equilibrium at the interface between the two different element types by an iterative procedure based on the principle of virtual work. After establishing the constraint equations for the interface, the 2D elasticity model is related to the small‐scale model by the global‐local enrichment strategy of GFEM. In such a strategy, the numerical solutions of the local problem subjected to boundary conditions derived from the global‐scale problem enrich the approximation of this same global problem in an iterative procedure. Each step of the crack propagation requires a new sequence of this iterative global‐local procedure. On the other hand, the constraint equation for the interface is defined only once. The crack representation in a confined region by the global‐local strategy avoids a remeshing that would require new constraint equations. Two numerical problems illustrate the proposed strategy and assess the influence of the analysis parameters.

Effect of true triaxial principal stress unloading rate on strain energy density of sandstone

Deep rock are often in a true triaxial stress state. Studying the impacts of varying unloading speeds on their strain energy (SE) density is highly significant for predicting rock stability. Through true triaxial unloading principal stress experiments and true triaxial stress equilibrium unloading experiments on sandstone, this paper proposes a method to compute the SE density in a true triaxial compressive unloading principal stress test. This method aims to analyze the SE variation in rocks under the action of true triaxial unloading principal stresses. Acoustic emission is used to verify the correctness of the SE density calculation method in this paper. This study found that: (1) Unloading in one principal stress direction causes the SE density to rise in the other principal stress directions. This rise in SE, depending on its reversibility, can be categorized into elastic and dissipated SE. (2)When unloading principal stresses, the released elastic SE density in the unloading direction is influence by the stress path and rate. (3) The higher the unloading speed will leads to greater increases in the input SE density, elastic SE density, and dissipative SE density in the other principal stress directions. (4) The dissipated SE generated under true triaxial compression by unloading the principal stress is positively correlated with the damage to the rock; with an increase in unloading rate, there is a corresponding increase in the formation of cracks after unloading. (5) Utilizing the stress balance unloading test, we propose a calculation method for SE density in true triaxial unloading principal stress tests.

Experimental investigation on rockburst characteristics of highly stressed D-shape tunnel subjected to impact load

Rockburst has always been a challenge for the safe construction of deep underground engineering. This study investigated the rockburst characteristics in highly-stressed D-shape tunnels under impact loads from rock blasting and other mining-related dynamics disturbances. The biaxial Hopkinson pressure bar was utilized to apply varying biaxial prestress and the same impact loads to cube specimens with D-shape hole. High-speed camera and digital image correlation (DIC) were used to capture the failure process and strain field of specimen. The test results demonstrate that the D-shape hole specimen experience rockburst under coupled static stress and impact load. Under this circumstance, the rockburst mechanism of the D-shaped hole specimens involves spalling in sidewall induced by impact load, indicating dynamic tensile failure. The high static prestress provides the initial stress field, while the impact load disrupts the stress equilibrium, result in the stress or strain concentration in the sidewall of the D-shape hole, inducing rockburst. Moreover, the rockburst process can be divided into (1) calm stage, (2) crack initiation, propagation, and coalesce stage, (3) spalling stage and (4) rock fragments ejection stage. Impact load triggers rockburst occurrence, while vertical stress further determines the rockburst characteristics. The influence range and magnitude of strain concentration zone and displacement deformation of the tunnel surrounding rock increases with increasing vertical stress, thus inducing more severe rockburst.

Modelling dynamic fracture and fragmentation of rocks under multiaxial coupled static and dynamic loads with a parallelised 3D FDEM

In this study, a three-dimensional (3D) combined finite-discrete element method (FDEM) based simulator, which enables the robust simulation of full-scale triaxial Hopkinson bar (Tri-HB) testing system, including the capture of fracture and fragmentation processes of rock specimens as well as the detection and analysis of generated rock fragments, is developed for investigating the dynamic responses of rocks subjected to multiaxial coupled static and dynamic loads. An innovative two-step approach is proposed to first efficiently achieve the static stress state in the entire Tri-HB system and then apply dynamic loading to the system. The proposed approach with the schemes of mass scaling and local damping can significantly reduce the run time for static computation involving cohesive elements and complex contact mechanics in the framework of explicit time-integration. The developed program is well validated by achieving dynamic stress equilibrium in the Tri-HB system and comparing the simulated stress wave profiles with those from laboratory experiments. Then, the progressive dynamic fracture and fragmentation processes of rocks under different static stress conditions in a full-scale Tri-HB system are investigated, which vividly exhibit the confinement dependence of the dynamic behaviours of rocks in the testing system. It is found that, even with the same loading rate, separate input parameter sets for rock need to be established in FDEM for different confinement conditions to capture the actual rate dependent behaviour of rock. Further studies are also conducted to investigate the effect of interfacial friction on the fracture behaviour, and the results indicate that higher interfacial frictions significantly disturb the dynamic stress variations and the true rock behaviour in the system. Through high performance computing of 3D FDEM, this study is expected to contribute to the understanding of dynamic responses of rocks subjected to multiaxial coupled static and dynamic loads in deep underground engineering.

Free vibration analysis of fiber-reinforced composite multilayer cylindrical shells under hydrostatic pressure

With the development and application of composite materials in deepwater submersibles, the influence of high external pressure from deepwater environments on the vibration characteristics of composite pressure-resistant cylindrical shells cannot be ignored. In this paper, the free vibration characteristics of prestressed composite multilayer shells are methodically examined by establishing partial differential equations based on the three-dimensional elasticity theory. To solve these equations, the state-space technique and double Fourier series expansion are employed to transform them into state-space ordinary differential equations. These equations are utilized to analyze vibration problems of simply supported composite multilayer cylindrical shells with arbitrary layered angles. The initial stress equilibrium equation is solved to determine the prestress induced by the hydrostatic pressure. This overcomes the limitation of membrane stress and considers non-uniform distributions of radial and interlaminar prestresses. The proposed theoretical model and solution strategies are validated by comparing with theoretical and experimental results from the existing literature and the finite element method. Additionally, the present investigation reveals that the natural frequencies of thick shells can be calculated more accurately using the prestress derived by the proposed approach, especially subjected to noticeable hydrostatic pressure. Finally, the performed investigations indicate that the circumferential prestressing has a more pronounced effect on the shell's natural frequencies than axial prestressing.

Torsional vibration of tapered pile including circumferential support of surrounding soil

The tapered pile is usually divided into finite segments along the vertical direction due to its variable cross-section when investigating its torsional dynamic characteristics. However, an annular projection would be formed at the contact surface of the adjacent pile segments due to the difference in radius, through which the surrounding soil will apply the circumferential support on the pile segment. In this study, the Voigt model is adopted to model the circumferential support of the surrounding soil acting on the annular projection. On this basis, an amended impedance function transfer method is established combined with the circumferential stress equilibrium equations and circumferential displacement continuity conditions at the contact surface of the adjacent pile segments. The shear complex stiffness transfer method is employed to consider the construction disturbance during pile installation. Then, an improved analytical solution for the torsional vibration of the tapered pile considering the circumferential support of the surrounding soil is established by solving the equations for the soil and pile. Based on the solution, the torsional vibration of the tapered pile is investigated and the influence of the circumferential support of the surrounding soil is revealed under different pile parameters and construction disturbance conditions.

Adaptive deep homogenization theory for periodic heterogeneous materials

We present an adaptive physics-informed deep homogenization neural network (DHN) approach to formulate a full-field micromechanics model for elastic and thermoelastic periodic arrays with different microstructures. The unit cell solution is approximated by fully connected multilayers via minimizing a loss function formulated in terms of the sum of residuals from the stress equilibrium and heat conduction partial differential equations (PDEs), together with interfacial traction-free or adiabatic boundary conditions. In comparison, periodicity boundary conditions are directly satisfied by introducing a network layer with sinusoidal functions. Fully trainable weights are applied on all collocation points, which are simultaneously trained alongside the network weights. Hence, the network automatically assigns higher weights to the collocation points in the vicinity of the interface (particularly challenging regions of the unit cell solution) in the loss function. This compels the neural networks to enhance their performance at these specific points. The accuracy of adaptive DHN is verified against the finite element and the elasticity solution respectively for elliptical and circular cylindrical pores/fibers. The advantage of the adaptive DHN over the original DHN technique is justified by considering locally irregular porous architecture where pore–pore interaction makes training the network particularly slow and hard to optimize.

The effect of the stress equilibrium factor on the composite case of the solid rocket motor

In this paper, based on the composite structure design and analysis software ANSYS ACP, the layup design for the composite cases of the equal pole hole solid rocket motor with different stress equilibrium factors is carried out. The finite element software ANSYS Workbench is used to study in detail the effects of stress equilibrium factor on the stress level, failure degree, and burst pressure prediction of the case under a certain internal pressure. The results show that reducing the value of the stress equilibrium factor can reduce the stress level of each winding layer along the main direction of the material in the motor case and gradually transfer the maximum stress of the case along the fiber direction from the weak stress zone to the cylinder section. This is beneficial for improving the burst pressure of the case and making the burst point located in the cylinder section. However, whether the case failure is related to the selected failure theory and strength criterion, the failure results and burst pressure obtained using different failure theories and strength criteria may be different, which indicates that each failure criterion has its scope of application and limitations. Under the Tsai-Wu criterion, using the stress equilibrium equation to calculate the stress equilibrium factor can just ensure that each winding layer of the motor case does not fail under the working pressure. In summary, when designing a composite case and predicting its failure, in addition to considering whether the stress equilibrium factor taken is conducive to meeting the design requirements for the strength of the case, it is also necessary to consider the use of multiple failure criteria to study the failure of the case. Obviously, arbitrarily selecting the stress equilibrium factor is not appropriate in the above process. By analyzing the influence of the stress equilibrium factor on the strength and failure condition of the motor case, it can provide an effective reference for the design of a composite case for SRM.

Role of oxidative stress-induced ferroptosis in cancer therapy.

Ferroptosis is a distinct mode of cell death, distinguishing itself from typical apoptosis by its reliance on the accumulation of iron ions and lipid peroxides. Cells manifest an imbalance between oxidative stress and antioxidant equilibrium during certain pathological contexts, such as tumours, resulting in oxidative stress. Notably, recent investigations propose that heightened intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) due to oxidative stress can heighten cellular susceptibility to ferroptosis inducers or expedite the onset of ferroptosis. Consequently, comprehending role of ROS in the initiation of ferroptosis has significance in elucidating disorders related to oxidative stress. Moreover, an exhaustive exploration into the mechanism and control of ferroptosis might offer novel targets for addressing specific tumour types. Within this context, our review delves into recent fundamental pathways and the molecular foundation of ferroptosis. Four classical ferroptotic molecular pathways are well characterized, namely, glutathione peroxidase 4-centred molecular pathway, nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 molecular pathway, mitochondrial molecular pathway, and mTOR-dependent autophagy pathway. Furthermore, we seek to elucidate the regulatory contributions enacted by ROS. Additionally, we provide an overview of targeted medications targeting four molecular pathways implicated in ferroptosis and their potential clinical applications. Here, we review the role of ROS and oxidative stress in ferroptosis, and we discuss opportunities to use ferroptosis as a new strategy for cancer therapy and point out the current challenges persisting within the domain of ROS-regulated anticancer drug research and development.

Analytical solution for simplifying the pile-soil interaction to a spring-damping system under horizontal vibration

An analytical solution is developed to investigate the model of simplifying the pile-soil interaction to a spring-damping system when the horizontal earthquake input or the top of the model is subjected to horizontal dynamic load. Based on Euler-Bernoulli theory, the dynamic equilibrium equations of pile in soil and air are established, respectively. Then, utilizing the corresponding boundary conditions, potential function decomposition, and transfer matrix method, the analytical expression of impedance at the pile head whether the horizontal earthquake input or the top of the system is subjected to horizontal dynamic load can be presented. Furthermore, the model of the pile-soil complex interaction can be simplified as a spring-damping system according to the stress equilibrium at the pile bottom in the air. Moreover, the rationality of the present solution (without simplification) is verified by comparison with existing methods, and then the difference between the present solution (without simplification) and the spring-damping system (simplification) is also compared. Finally, the influence of the parameter variation in the pile buried in the soil and soil free-field on the simplified model are discussed. The research results will be instructive for the simplification of numerical model for pile-soil interaction.

A New Data Processing Approach for the SHPB Test Based on PSO-TWER

This study addresses the challenge of accurately determining the arrival time of stress wave signals in SHPB test data processing. To eliminate human error, we introduce the time-window energy ratio method and evaluate six filters for noise reduction using box fractal dimensions. A mathematical model is established to optimize the stress equilibrium and impact process, which is solved using particle swarm optimization, resulting in the PSO-TWER method. We explore the impact of inertia weight and calculation methods on optimization outcomes, defining a stress equilibrium evaluation index. The results indicate that time-window length significantly affects arrival-time outputs, and the dynamic inertia weight factor enhances optimization convergence. The method accurately determines arrival times and effectively screens test data, providing a robust approach for SHPB test data processing.

Comprehensive Distortion Analysis of a Laser Direct Metal Deposition (DMD)-Manufactured Large Prototype Made of Soft Martensitic Steel 1.4313

Additive manufacturing (AM) by using direct metal deposition (DMD) often causes erratic distortion patterns, especially on large parts. This study presents a systematic distortion analysis by employing numerical approaches using transient–thermal and structural simulations, experimental approaches using tomography, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and an analytical approach calculating the buckling distortion of a piston. The most essential geometrical features are thin walls situated between massive rings. An eigenvalue buckling analysis, a DMD process, and heat treatment simulation are presented. The eigenvalue buckling simulation shows that it is highly dependent on the mesh size. The computational effort of the DMD and heat treatment simulation was reduced through simplifications. Moreover, artificial imperfections were imposed in the heat treatment simulation, which moved the part into the buckling state inspired by the experiment. Although the numerical results of both simulations are successful, the eigenvalue and DMD simulation cannot be validated through tomography and XRD. This is because tomography is unable to measure small elastic strain fields, the simulated residual stresses were overestimated, and the part removal disturbed the residual stress equilibrium. Nevertheless, the heat treatment simulation can predict the distortion pattern caused by an inhomogeneous temperature field during ambient cooling in an oven. The massive piston skirt cools down and shrinks faster than the massive core. The reduced yield strength at elevated temperatures and critical buckling load leads to plastic deformation of the thin walls.

Experimental study on the dynamic mechanical and progressive fracture behavior of multi-jointed rock mass under repetitive impact loading

The failure of rock masses is often controlled by structural planes, and the study on the dynamic mechanical behavior of multi-jointed rock masses under repetitive dynamic loading is still few. A series of repetitive impact tests on multi-jointed gabbro (MJG) are conducted with the split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) testing apparatus. The effects of repetitive impact and joint inclination angles (α) on the dynamic mechanical behavior of MJG from the perspectives of impact number, stress equilibrium, dynamic mechanical properties, energy evolution, and macro and micro failure modes are deeply investigated. The results show that the joint inclination angle affects the impact resistance of the MJG. Under repetitive impact loadings, the mechanical behavior of the MJG is consistent, with tensile wing cracks initiating from the joint tips and propagating along the loading direction until specimen failure. During this process, cracks propagate along the weakest paths, thereby consuming the energy generated by the impact and preventing the activation of other minor defects. The macroscopic failure of the MJG undergoes four stages: the appearance of white patch, crack coalescence, crack penetration, and fracture, with the final failure mode being splitting. The microscopic formation stage of white patch is divided into microcrack activation and microcrack widening.