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According to fracture mechanics theory, the initial cracking law and wing crack propagation model of compression shear rock cracks subjected to hydraulic pressure and far field stresses are discussed. The results of the theoretical study show that crack initiation strength is inversely related to hydraulic pressure, that hydraulic pressure aggravates the wing crack's growth, and that the wing crack's behavior under high hydraulic pressure shifts from stable to unstable expansion. The confining pressure is proportional to the rock mass strength, the wing crack's stress intensity factor drops as the remote field stress σ 3 increases, and the wing crack tends to expand stably. As the crack angle increases, the cracking strength reduces at first, then increases. At the same time, damage fracture mechanics models are established for the occurrence of wing crack-wing crack failure, wing crack-shear crack failure, wing crack-shear crack-wing crack failure, and shear crack-shear crack failure in the compression-shear crack bridge under far-field stress and hydraulic pressure. The link between hydraulic pressure, confining pressure, fracture angle, stress intensity factor, and compression-shear factor λ 12 is also clarified. The value of the stress intensity factor increases when the hydraulic pressure decreases, the confining pressure increases, and the crack angle increases, whereas the compression-shear factor decreases. This study lays the groundwork for a quantitative assessment of fractured rock mass destruction under hydraulic pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple compression tests on rock-like samples of pre-existing cracks with different geometries were conducted to investigate the strength properties and crack propagation behavior considering multi-crack interactions. The progressive failure process of the specimens was segmented into four categories and seven coalescence modes were identified due to different crack propagation mechanisms. Ultimately, a mechanical model of the multi-crack rock mass was proposed to investigate the gradual fracture and damage evolution traits of the multi-crack rock on the basis of exploring the law of the compression-shear wing crack initiation and propagation. A comparison between theory and experimental results indicated that the peak strength of the specimens with multiple fractures decreased initially and subsequently increased with the increase in the fissure inclination angles; the peak strength of specimens decreased with the increase in the density of fissure distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In view of the nonlinear mechanical characteristics of rock foundation creep fracture and its influence on the stability of wind turbine under wind load, based on the influence of wind load, this paper proposed the elastoplastic creep fracture and rock foundation bearing capacity on wind turbine. Considering the superstructure concrete with rock foundation and its boundary conditions, the wind load standard value was obtained and wind turbine system composition was constructed. The two grades of freedom system of viscous damping vibration model was proposed. Furthermore, the frequency characteristic equations and the relations of the first- and second-order natural frequencies were obtained. Considering plastic yield theory on power hard rock base material, the analytical expressions of principal stress distribution, plastic zone, and plastic state of I-II composite crack were obtained and used for coupling Mohr–Coulomb plastic yield condition and creep fracture characteristics. Furthermore, the nonlinear creep model equation and accelerated creep fracture time were also obtained, to be used for the modified Kelvin nonlinear accelerated creep model. Combined with the calculation examples, it is verified that the accelerated creep displacement and crack propagation of rock foundation are obvious, taking full account of the wind bracing and creep characteristics of rock foundation. Final, the failure mode of rock foundation is of compressive shear, local shear, and bending-shear; so, it is necessary to reinforce the interface of the rock foundation in a timely manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reason for instability in a rock mass with a weak interlayer is not only the sliding failure of the rock interlayer structural plane but also the tip crack propagation caused by the stress concentration at the tip of the interlayer. In this study, a uniaxial compression test of an anchored rock mass with a weak interlayer was carried out to determine the influence of the anchorage on the failure pattern and the strength of samples with different interlayer dip angles. In addition, the coupled DEM–FEM numerical simulation method was used to study the internal stress evolution of the sample and the stress distribution of the anchor under the anchorage effect. The results showed that the anchorage effect on reinforcement and strength enhancement was greatest for the sample with an interlayer dip angle of 30°. Under the anchorage effect, crack initiation was limited and there was more shear failure in the samples. The reinforcement range of the anchorage effect for anchors with restrained ends was larger than for anchors with free ends. When the rock–anchor interface was unbonded, the effect of the free-ends anchor reflected the residual friction, but the restrained-ends anchor still worked by limiting the lateral expansion of the rocks. The stress values and deformation of the anchors decreased gradually with an increase in dip angle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rock masses are heterogeneous materials containing a large number of discontinuities, and the failure of the natural rock mass is induced by the crack propagation and coalescence of discontinuities, especially for the rock mass around tunnel or underground space. Because the deformation or failure process of jointed rock mass exhibits strongly nonlinear characteristics, it is also very difficult to predict the strength and failure modes of the rock mass. Therefore, it is very necessary to study the failure mechanisms of jointed rock mass under different stress conditions. Apart from the stress condition, the discontinuities geometry also has a significant influence on the mechanical behavior of jointed rock mass. Then, substantial, experimental, and numerical efforts have been devoted to the study of crack initiation, propagation, and coalescence of rock or rock-like specimens containing different kinds of joints or fissures. The purpose of this review is to discuss the development and the contribution of the experiment test and numerical simulation in failure behavior of jointed rock or rock-like specimens. Overall, this review can be classified into three parts. It begins by briefly explaining the significance of studying these topics. Afterwards, the experimental and numerical studies on the strength, deformation, and failure characteristics of jointed rock or rock-like materials are carried out and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive and detailed investigations have been made to better understand the rock-breaking mechanism of the tunnel boring machine (TBM) disc cutter, but the crack propagation and failure modes induced by the disc cutter when the confining stresses and joint characteristics vary have not been comprehensively investigated. To address this area of research, a triaxial testing machine (TRW-3000) is modified to investigate the effect of different confining stresses (0, 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10 MPa) on the rock breaking of different joint angles (0°, 30°, 60°, and 90°) induced by the disc cutter. In this series of tests, the crack propagation and failure modes of the intact and jointed rock with different confining stresses are analysed. During the experiments, four different types of failure modes have been observed. The failure mode is affected by the joint orientation at low confining stress. The existence of joints has no obvious effect on the failure mode when the confining stress increases to a certain extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blast induced rock mass damage and crack propagation play important roles in structure safety and stability in mining, quarrying, and civil constructions. This paper focuses on the effect of small blasthole diameter blast on crack propagation and damage accumulation in water-bearing rock mass containing initial damage composed of inherent geological discontinuities and previous multiblast induced damage. To elucidate this effect, theoretical analysis of calculation method for several important blast influencing factors is firstly presented. Secondly, definition of a practical damage variable using ratio of longitudinal wave velocity in rock mass before blast occurrence to that after blast occurrence and derivation of a damage accumulation calculation equation accounting for initial damage and blasting effect are described. Lastly, a detailed description of the conducted in situ blast tests and plan layout of the sonic wave monitoring holes is reported. The results indicate that blast activates and then extends the initial cracks in rock mass, leading to accumulation of rock mass damage. The rock mass damage accumulation can be conveniently quantified using the proposed damage variable. When the damage variable reaches its threshold of 0.19, occurrence of damage in the surrounding rock mass is indicated. It is also found that the blast induced rock mass damage extent and the blast induced vibration velocities decrease nonlinearly with increasing the distance between blast source and monitoring position. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rock strengths are directly influenced by the open or closed flaws widely distributed in rock masses. Extensive studies have been conducted on the propagations of open flaws in rocks. However, few concerns are paid on the propagation of closed flaws, the influence of the surface friction on the initiation and propagation of closed flaws should be investigated systematically. In present article, the crack initiation and propagation in rock like material subjected to compressive loads have been investigated. The effects of crack surface friction on crack initiation and propagation have been quantified with the help from extended finite element method which is efficient and accurate. Based on the analysis on stress distribution and propagation patterns, following results are obtained: Firstly, minor effects are exerted by crack surface friction on the stress distribution around the flaws when the flaws inclination angle is 30° and 45°. However, as the inclination angle increases to 60°, the effects are much more significant. Secondly, as the inclination angle ranges from 30° to 60°, the most favorable angle for crack propagation is 45°. Thirdly, the initiation location and angle of the wing cracks will not be influenced by the frictions. However, the propagation length will be greatly influenced by the friction and the inclination angle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of confining stress on rock breakage by a tunnel boring machine cutter was investigated by conducting sequential indentation tests in a biaxial state. Combined with morphology measurements of breaking grooves and an analysis of surface and internal crack propagation between nicks, the effects of maximum confining stress and minimum stress on indentation efficiency, crack propagation and chip formation were investigated. Indentation tests and morphology measurements show that increasing a maximum confining stress will result in increased consumed energy in indentations, enlarged groove volumes and promoted indentation efficiency when the corresponding minimum confining stress is fixed. The energy consumed in indentations will increase with increase in minimum confining stress, however, because of the decreased groove volumes as the minimum confining stress increases, the efficiency will decrease. Observations of surface crack propagation show that more intensive fractures will be induced as the maximum confining stress increases, whereas the opposite occurs for an increase of minimum confining stress. An observation of the middle section, cracks and chips shows that as the maximum confining stress increases, chips tend to form in deeper parts when the minimum confining stress is fixed, whereas they tend to formed in shallower parts as the minimum confining stress increases when the maximum confining stress is fixed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fracture coalescence, which plays an important role in the behavior of brittle materials, is investigated by loading rock-like specimens with two and three pre-existing flaws made by pulling out the embedded metal inserts in the pre-cured period. Different geometries are obtained by changing the angle of the flaws with respect to the direction of loading and the spacing. With reference to the experimental observation of crack initiation and propagation from pre-existing flaws, the influences of the third pre-existing flaw on the cracking processes was analyzed. It was found during the test that: with the increase of the angle of the rock bridge, the rock specimen takes a turn from wing crack propagation failure to crack coalescence failure, and it will be more obvious with the increase of the prefabricated crack angle. According to the different geometries of pre-existing cracks, seven types of coalescence have been identified based on the nature of the cracks for the specimen with two pre-existing flaws. The multi-crack interaction results in the continuous degradation of the macroscopic mechanical properties of the rock mass. On one hand, it weakens the trend of relative sliding of the coplanar cracks, and on the other hand, it changed the coalescence patterns of the fractured specimen. The research reported here provides increased understanding of the fundamental nature of rock mass failure in compression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fracturing process during the progressive failure of a jointed rock slope is numerically investigated by using fracture mechanics and the strength reduction method (SRM). A displacement discontinuity method containing frictional elements is developed for the calculation of the stress intensity factor (SIF). The failure initiation of the jointed rock slope is analyzed by evaluating the SIF. A new joint model is proposed by combining solid elements with interface elements in the commercial software FLAC. These represent the discontinuous planes in a rock mass on which sliding or separation can occur. The progressive failure process is simulated by reducing the shear strength of the rock mass, which includes the process of stress concentration, crack initiation, crack propagation, slip weakening, and coalescence of failure surfaces. The factor of safety (FS) and location of the critical failure surface are determined by the SRM. The influence of the joint inclination is investigated using the FS and the SIF. Laboratory experiments on specimens containing an inclined flaw under compression-shear stress are also conducted to investigate the effect of the angle between the shear direction and the flaw inclination, which provides an experimental explanation for the shear behavior of jointed rock. The results show that the joint inclination dominates the failure behavior of jointed rock slope, and two failure patterns have been classified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]