Investigation of the macro- and micro-mechanical behaviors of binary mixtures under proportional strain loading path via DEM simulation

Abstract

The proportional strain loading test is a prevalent method for investigation diffuse instability. The majority of current research concentrates on narrowly graded materials, with relatively less focus on binary mixtures under proportional strain loading. Therefore, a series of numerical tests have been conducted using the discrete element method to study the influence of fine content and strain increment ratio on the binary mixtures. The test results show that the fine content of binary mixtures is intimately connected to the critical strain increment ratio which precipitate a transition from stability to instability. Binary mixtures characterized by a low stress ratio at the onset of instability also demonstrate a heightened sensitivity to shifts in strain increment ratio. The macroscopic responses, such as the stress ratio at the onset of instability, shear strength, and pore water pressure, exhibit different trends of variation with the fine content compared to microscopic responses, including coordination number, friction mobilization index, and the proportion of sliding contacts. Furthermore, the anisotropy coefficient is introduced to dissect the sources of anisotropy at onset of instability, revealing that strong contact fabric anisotropy can mirror the evolution of the stress ratio. The stress ratio at onset of instability is predominantly influenced by anisotropy in contact normal and normal contact force.