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In this paper, the embedded discontinuity approach is applied in finite element modeling of rock in compression and tension. For this end, a rate-dependent constitutive model based on (strong) embedded displacement discontinuity model is developed to describe the mode I, mode II and mixed mode fracture of rock. The constitutive model describes the bulk material as linear elastic until reaching the elastic limit. Beyond the elastic limit, the rate-dependent exponential softening law governs the evolution of the displacement jump. Rock heterogeneity is incorporated in the present approach by random description of the mineral texture of rock. Moreover, initial microcrack population always present in natural rocks is accounted for as randomly-oriented embedded discontinuities. In the numerical examples, the model properties are extensively studied in uniaxial compression. The effect of loading rate and confining pressure is also tested in the 2D (plane strain) numerical simulations. These simulations demonstrate that the model captures the salient features of rock in confined compression and uniaxial tension. The developed method has the computational efficiency of continuum plasticity models. However, it also has the advantage, over these models, of accounting for the orientation of introduced microcracks. This feature is crucial with respect to the fracture behavior of rock in compression as shown in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Squeezing failure is a common failure mechanism experienced in underground coal mine roadways due mainly to mining-induced stresses, which are much higher than the strength of rock mass surrounding an entry. In this study, numerical simulation was carried out to investigate the mechanisms of roadway squeezing using a novel UDEC Trigon approach. A numerical roadway model was created based on a case study at the Zhangcun coal mine in China. Coal extraction using the longwall mining method was simulated in the model with calculation of the mining-induced stresses. The process of roadway squeezing under severe mining-induced stresses was realistically captured in the model. Deformation phenomena observed in field, including roof sag, wall convexity and failed rock bolts are realistically produced in the UDEC Trigon model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on experimental investigations, we propose a coupled elastoplastic damage model to simulate the mechanical behavior of granite under compressive stress conditions. The granite is taken from the Beishan area, a preferable region for China's high-level radioactive waste repository. Using a 3D acoustic emission monitoring system in mechanical tests, we focus on the cracking process and its influence on the macroscopic mechanical behavior of the granite samples. It is verified that the crack propagation coupled with fractional sliding along the cracks is the principal mechanism controlling the failure process and nonlinear mechanical behavior of granite under compressive stress conditions. Based on this understanding, the coupled elastoplastic damage model is formulated in the framework of the thermodynamics theory. In the model, the coupling between damage and plastic deformation is simulated by introducing the independent damage variable in the plastic yield surface. As a preliminary validation of the model, a series of numerical simulations are performed for compressive tests conducted under different confining pressures. Comparisons between the numerical and simulated results show that the proposed model can reproduce the main features of the mechanical behavior of Beishan granite, particularly the damage evolution under compressive stress conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]