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Mechanical behavior and failure modes of jointed rock mass based on rough discrete fracture network models

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Abstract

Rough discrete fracture network (RDFN) models which consider the joint geometry of rock masses were proposed. The uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) of RDFN models with different joint geometries was discussed considering varying scale sizes. The influence of joint geometry on the mechanical behavior, such as compressive strength, shear strength and failure modes, was analyzed. The results showed that the joint geometry have little influence on the linear elasticity of jointed rocks under the uniaxial compressive test. The failure modes were influenced by the joint distribution as well as the joint rough geometry. The UCS was affected by the geometry of the joint network. The UCSs of stepped and fractal RDFN models were relatively higher due to the intersection of rock teeth. The size effect of UCSs with different geometric shapes was significantly affected by joint geometry. The peak shear stress of the stepped RDFN model reached the maximum value and the curved RDFN model was the minimum when the normal stress was lower. The joint inclination and distribution could dominate the shear failure patterns of the jointed rock models, indicating that the influence of geometric shape of the joint must be considered when studying the mechanical properties of synthetic jointed rock mass.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Research data policy and data availability statements

Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2021YFC2900500), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52074020), the Open Fund of State Key Laboratory of Water Resource Protection and Utilization in Coal Mining (WPUKFJJ2019-06), and the Interdisciplinary Research Project for Young Teachers of USTB (Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities) (No. FRF-IDRY-21-001).

Funding

National Key Research and Development Program of China, 2021YFC2900500, 2021YFC3001302, 2021YFC2900500, 2021YFC3001302, National Natural Science Foundation of China, 52074020, 52074020, 52074020, Open Fund of State Key Laboratory of Water Resource Protection and Utilization in Coal Mining, WPUKFJJ2019-06, WPUKFJJ2019-06, WPUKFJJ2019-06.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Beijing Key Laboratory of Urban Underground Space Engineering, USTB, Beijing, 100083, China

    Peitao Wang

  2. State Key Laboratory of Water Resource Protection and Utilization in Coal Mining, Beijing, 100011, China

    Peitao Wang

  3. School of Civil and Resources Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Peitao Wang, Zhenwu Qi, Chi Ma & Meifeng Cai

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  1. Peitao Wang
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PW, ZQ wrote the main manuscript text and CM conducted the comparison of numerical simulations. Writing—review and editing are conducted by PW and MC. All authors have read, reviewed, and approved the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Peitao Wang.

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Wang, P., Qi, Z., Ma, C. et al. Mechanical behavior and failure modes of jointed rock mass based on rough discrete fracture network models. Environ Earth Sci 81, 543 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-022-10667-4

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