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Numerical study on size effect and anisotropy of columnar jointed basalts under uniaxial compression

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Abstract

Under uniaxial loading, the heterogeneity of rock mass, the change of mechanical properties of joints, and the progressive fracture process of rock mass significantly affect the size effect and anisotropy of columnar jointed basalts (CJBs). To reveal the fracture features and failure mechanisms of CJBs influenced by the size effect and anisotropy, the digital image correlation (DIC), meso-damage mechanics, statistical strength theory, and continuum mechanics were combined (the DIC-improved RFPA), the digital images of CJB specimens were processed to establish the inhomogeneous numerical models, and a series of numerical tests were therefore conducted. The gradual fracture processes and macro failure patterns of CJBs orthogonal and parallel to column axis under uniaxial compression were studied, and the effects of various factors on the size effect and anisotropic mechanical properties of CJBs were further analyzed. The results show that model size, column dip angle, rock heterogeneity, column diameter, elastic modulus of joints, residual strength coefficient of joints, ratio of shift distance of joints, irregularity degrees of columns, and model boundaries have remarkable and complex effects on the mechanical behaviors of CJBs. The results greatly improve our understanding of the non-linear deformation and failure behaviors of CJBs and provide theorical basis for engineering construction in the areas of CJBs.

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Abbreviations

CJRMs :

Columnar jointed rock masses

CJBs :

Columnar jointed basalts

UCS:

Uniaxial compressive strength

EDM:

Equivalent deformation modulus

TACUCS:

Transverse anisotropy coefficient of uniaxial compressive strength

TACEDM:

Transverse anisotropy coefficient of equivalent deformation modulus

σ :

Stress (MPa)

f cr :

Residual compressive strength

f tr :

Residual tensile strength

f c0 :

Uniaxial compressive strength

f t0 :

Uniaxial tensile strength

ε :

Strain

ε c0 :

Strain at fc0

ε t0 :

Strain at ft0

ε tu :

Ultimate tensile strain

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Funding

This study was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 42102314), the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) New Investigator Award (Grant No. EP/V028723/1), and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 2020M680950), for which the authors are grateful.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Coastal and Offshore Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, 116024, China

    Yongyi Wang, Bin Gong & Chun’an Tang

  2. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Brunel University London, London, UB8 3PH, UK

    Bin Gong & Tao Zhao

Authors
  1. Yongyi Wang
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  2. Bin Gong
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  3. Chun’an Tang
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  4. Tao Zhao
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bin Gong.

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Wang, Y., Gong, B., Tang, C. et al. Numerical study on size effect and anisotropy of columnar jointed basalts under uniaxial compression. Bull Eng Geol Environ 81, 41 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-021-02499-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-021-02499-6

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