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Investigations of mechanical and failure properties of 3D printed columnar jointed rock mass under true triaxial compression with one free face

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Abstract

The failure and mechanical properties of columnar jointed rock mass (CJRM) after excavation are of great significance to the stability evaluation of rock mass engineering. In this investigation, for understanding the mechanical properties and excavation responses of CJRM in the Baihetan Hydropower Station, the CJRM specimens (100 mm × 100 mm × 200 mm) containing internal implicit joints (IIJs) within the columns and irregular joints between the columns were created via 3D printing. After that, the tests of true triaxial compression with one free face were carried out. The laboratory tests results show that the exfoliation of the 3D printed columns at the tip of CJRM specimens occurred in the loading stage, which is in accordance with the failure pattern of natural CJRM. In addition, when the inclination angle of columns (α) is 0°, the 3D printed rock specimen undergoes splitting failure along with the structure of columnar joints. When the inclination angle (α) is 30° or 60°, the shear failure of the structure of columnar joints is predominated in the 3D printed rock specimen. When the inclination angle (α) of columns is 90°, the splitting failure of the structure of columnar joints is the main failure pattern of the 3DP CJRM sample. The mechanical properties of peak strength and tangential modulus of 3D printed columnar jointed rock specimens show obvious anisotropic characteristics. the acoustic emission (AE) characteristics of the 3D printed specimens varied with different inclination angles as well. When the inclination angle of columns is low (α = 0° or 30°), the acoustic emission mode of the 3D printed columnar jointed rock specimen is foreshock-principal shock-aftershock type. When the inclination angle (α) is 60°, the acoustic emission mode is multi-peak type, which corresponds to the shear failure of the 3D printed rock specimens. When the inclination angle (α) is 90°, the acoustic emission events are the most numerous and the energy released is the highest. In addition, under true triaxial compression with one free face, the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the failure surfaces of 3D printed specimen exhibit directionality, and the brittleness of the failure surface is lower than that of natural rocks.

Article highlights

  • The tests of CJRM under true triaxial compression with one free face were carried out.

  • The failure and mechanical characteristics of 3DP CJRM samples under different compression conditions were compared.

  • The acoustic emission and SEM images of the 3DP CJRM specimens vary different inclination angles were analysed.

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All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the submitted article.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Professor Guoshao Su, Drs Xiaoyang Yan, Yanxin Liu, Guanyan Chen, Guofu Zhao and Hongyu Ren from Guangxi University, Nanning, China for their support in performing laboratory tests. The study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 42077251, 41807269, U1865203). The work presented in this paper was also supported by Open Research Fund of State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant NO. Z020011) and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No. DUT20RC(3)011).

Funding

The funding was provided by national natural science foundation of china Yingjie Xia (Grant No. 42077251), Yingjie Xia (Grant No. 41807269), Chuanqing Zhang (Grant No. U1865203), State key laboratory of geomechanics and geotechnical engineering Yingjie Xia (Grant No. Z020011).

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Authors and Affiliations

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

    Yingjie Xia, Bingchen Liu, Chun’an Tang, Danchen Zhao & Qingkun Meng

  2. State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, China

    Yingjie Xia, Chuanqing Zhang, Hui Zhou & Yang Gao

  3. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Yingjie Xia, Chuanqing Zhang, Hui Zhou & Yang Gao

  4. Power China Huadong Engineering Corporation, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, China

    Ning Liu & Jun Chen

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  1. Yingjie Xia
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  2. Bingchen Liu
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  3. Chuanqing Zhang
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  4. Ning Liu
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Correspondence to Chuanqing Zhang or Hui Zhou.

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Xia, Y., Liu, B., Zhang, C. et al. Investigations of mechanical and failure properties of 3D printed columnar jointed rock mass under true triaxial compression with one free face. Geomech. Geophys. Geo-energ. Geo-resour. 8, 26 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40948-021-00331-9

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