{"title":"Adaptive Mesh Generation and Numerical Verification for Complex Rock Structures Based on Optimization and Iteration Algorithms","authors":"Huaiguang Xiao, Yueyang Li, Hengyang Wu, Lei He","doi":"10.1002/nag.3898","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3898","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The modelling of rock structure is of great significance in characterizing rock characteristics and studying the failure laws of rock samples. In order to construct a high-fidelity model of the rock structure efficiently, this paper proposes an adaptive mesh dissection algorithm based on the Voronoi structure. Image processing techniques, including greyscale, threshold segmentation and edge detection, are applied to simplify the original rock image into a feature edge image. Then, a probability density diagram of the feature image is generated, which provides a probabilistic basis for the subsequent spreading of mesh seed points. Moreover, the concept of polygonal representation rate and the mesh quality evaluation system of four-dimensional metrics are established to suggest values for the seed point parameters of the initial mesh. The initial mesh is continuously optimized and iterated by barycentric iteration and gradient descent optimization methods to form mesh structural models with high representational performance efficiently. The model tests on particle, fracture and multi-phase rock images show that the optimized mesh model is highly similar to the original image in terms of similarity and edge fit, and the algorithm significantly reduces the short-edge rate and improves the shape regularity of the mesh structure. Finally, numerical tests of uniaxial compression are carried out based on the optimized mesh model. The results show that the model has computational potential in numerical calculations. This method builds a procedural structure from digital images to numerical models, which can provide a reliable model basis for simulating the physico-mechanical behaviour of heterogeneous rocks.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"677-699"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142670563","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Analysis of Fracturing Above Block Caving Back: A Spherical Shell Theory Approach and BEM Numerical Simulation","authors":"Jingyu Shi, Baotang Shen","doi":"10.1002/nag.3893","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3893","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Experiments and field monitoring have revealed that in block caving, fractures over the cave crown tend to form in narrow curved bands that are parallel or subparallel to the cave back surface. These fractures delineate curved shells of orebody between the bands and the cave back. The effectiveness of block caving hinges on the subsequent fracturing and fragmentation of these orebody shells. This study adopts a dual approach, combining thin spherical shell theory and full 3D numerical simulations along with principles of linear elastic fracture mechanics, to investigate the fracturing behaviour of these shells. Analytical analysis indicates that under axisymmetric loading, latitudinal tensile fractures predominantly initiate across the most part of the shell, occurring on both the upper and lower surfaces, except at a localised area. Additionally, longitudinal tensile fractures may initiate at the central area of the upper surface, while shear fractures tend to occur around the edge of the shell. Consequently, the shells become susceptible to fracturing, leading to the collapse or cave-in of the orebody. Numerical simulations agree with these findings, illustrating that fracturing points within the shell region are longitudinally dispersed throughout the entire shell. Most of these fracturing points satisfy the criteria for tensile fracturing, particularly within the middle portion of the shell, aligning with the analytical results. Furthermore, simulations considering nonaxisymmetric loading patterns demonstrate that regions surrounding the caving cavity, aligned with the minimum principal in situ stress, exhibit heightened susceptibility to fracture initiation. This insight holds potential significance for optimising the design of the caving process.</p>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"665-676"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/nag.3893","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142645936","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alec Tristani, Lina-María Guayacán-Carrillo, Jean Sulem
{"title":"Data-Driven Tools to Evaluate Support Pressure, Radial Displacements, and Face Extrusion for Tunnels Excavated in Elastoplastic Grounds","authors":"Alec Tristani, Lina-María Guayacán-Carrillo, Jean Sulem","doi":"10.1002/nag.3889","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3889","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Two-dimensional analysis of tunnel design based on the convergence–confinement method, although commonly used in tunnel design, may not always be applied. For example, in squeezing grounds, if the support is installed very close to the tunnel face, three-dimensional numerical modeling is required but is computationally expensive. Therefore, it is usually performed before or after tunnel excavation. A machine learning approach is presented here as an alternative to costly computations. Two surrogate models are developed based on synthetic data. The first model aims to assess the support pressure and the radial displacement at equilibrium in the lining and the radial displacement occurring close to the face at the installation distance of the support. The second model is intended to compute the extrusion of the core considering an unlined gallery. It is assumed a circular tunnel excavated in a Mohr–Coulomb elastoplastic perfectly plastic ground under an initial isotropic stress state. In particular, the bagging method is applied to neural networks to enhance the generalization capability of the models. A good performance is obtained using relatively scarce datasets. The modeling of the surrogate models is explained from the creation of the synthetic datasets to the evaluation of their performance. Their limitations are discussed. In practice, these two machine learning tools should be helpful in the field during the excavation phase.</p>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"654-664"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/nag.3889","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142645937","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hangli Gong, Mingyang Wang, Yi Luo, Tingting Liu, Ran Fan, Xinping Li
{"title":"Stress-Confinement Effect on the Dynamic Mechanical Properties of Heterogeneous Granite Under Impact Loading: Experimental and Numerical Simulation","authors":"Hangli Gong, Mingyang Wang, Yi Luo, Tingting Liu, Ran Fan, Xinping Li","doi":"10.1002/nag.3896","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3896","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>To investigate the stress-confinement effect on the dynamic crack propagation and energy evolution characteristics of heterogeneous granite under impact loading, a three-dimensional equivalent grain-based model (3D-GBM) and FLAC<sup>3D</sup>-PFC<sup>3D</sup> coupled modeling technique was used to establish a numerical model of a full-scale true triaxial Hopkinson test system. The results indicate that: (1) A rate-effect model of the dynamic strength enhancement factor for heterogeneous rocks under multiaxial static and dynamic combined loading was constructed, with lateral stress confinement enhancing the sensitivity of dynamic strength to the strain rate. (2) Axial stress reduces the crack initiation stress ratio (<i><span>σ</span></i><sub>ci</sub>/<i>σ</i><sub>d</sub>) and damage stress threshold ratio (<i>σ</i><sub>cd</sub>/<i>σ</i><sub>d</sub>), reducing the time to their onset, while lateral stress has the opposite effect. (3) Lateral stress confinement helps dynamically adjust the types of microcracks within the rock, restricts the relative slip friction between particles, and decreases the kinetic energy of failure. (4) At approximately the same strain rate, the strain energy and slip friction energy sequentially increase under uniaxial, biaxial, and triaxial stress confinement. The mutual slip friction and movement between rock particles are more intense under biaxial stress confinement compared to uniaxial conditions.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"633-653"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142637226","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Stress Field and Crack Pattern Interpretation by Deep Learning in a 2D Solid","authors":"Daniel Chou, Chloé Arson","doi":"10.1002/nag.3890","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3890","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>A nonlinear variational auto-encoder (NLVAE) is developed to reconstruct the plane strain stress field in a solid with embedded cracks subjected to uniaxial tension, uniaxial compression, and shear loading paths. Latent features are sampled from a skew-normal distribution, which allows encoding marked variations of the features of the stress field across the load steps. The NLVAE is trained and tested based upon stress maps generated with the finite element method (FEM) with cohesive zone elements (CZEs). The NLVAE successfully captures stress concentrations that develop across the loading steps as a result of crack propagation, especially when enhanced disentanglement is emphasized during training. Some latent variables consistently emerge as significant across various microstructure descriptors and loading paths. Correlations observed between the evolution of fabric descriptors and that of their significant stress latent features indicate that the NLVAE can capture important microstructure transitions during the loading process. Crack connectivity, crack eccentricity, and the distribution of zones of highly connected opened cracks versus zones with no cracks are the fabric descriptors that best explain the sequences of latent features that are the most important for the reconstruction of the stress field. Notably, the distributional shape, tail behavior, and symmetry of microstructure descriptor distributions have more influence on the stress field than basic measures of central tendency and spread.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"592-616"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142642578","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Extension of a 3D Geological Entity Modeling Method for Discontinuous Deformation Analysis","authors":"Xing Wang, Xiaodong Fu, Qian Sheng, Jian Chen, Jingyu Kang, Jiaming Wu","doi":"10.1002/nag.3887","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3887","url":null,"abstract":"<p>With the development of 3D discontinuous deformation analysis (DDA) in precise stress fields and crack propagation problems, it has also demonstrated outstanding capabilities in solving continuous–discontinuous problems. However, currently, 3D DDA modeling primarily focuses on generating rock joint networks and developing 3D cutting algorithms. Correspondingly, 3D geological modeling methods are not yet mature, and establishing 3D models often demands substantial time. The lack of supporting preprocessing modeling methods and corresponding visual operation interfaces significantly hampers the development of 3D DDA. This method builds upon advanced research achievements in unmanned aerial vehicle oblique photography, 3D reconstruction, 3D cutting, computer graphics, and visualization program design. This research establishes a 3D geological entity modeling method for 3D DDA and constructs a comprehensive program using relevant C++ libraries and C language interfaces. In this method, a 3D geological model that incorporates geological elements such as strata and faults is initially established using non-uniform rational B-splines (NURBSs) surfaces as the boundary of the solid model. Subsequently, finite element meshing is applied, followed by corresponding topology transformation, resulting in a 3D block system model suitable for 3D DDA calculation. To cater for diverse application scenarios, continuous–discontinuous models integrated with subblocks and models of arbitrary polyhedra can be established. The proposed method has been validated through several typical modeling examples, showing its ability to rapidly and generate 3D high-precision geological reality models suitable for 3D DDA calculations. Additionally, some techniques used in this method can be extended for modeling other numerical simulation methods, warranting further research.</p>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"575-591"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142642580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Characterization of Long-Term Municipal Solid Waste Constitutive Behavior With Coupled Biodegradation and Fibrous Reinforcing Effects","authors":"Xiulei Li, Chunwei Yang, Yuchen Zhang, Yuping Li, Jianyong Shi, Yanan Sun","doi":"10.1002/nag.3894","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3894","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>To appropriately simulate the long-term mechanical behavior of municipal solid waste (MSW), a constitutive model coupling the effects of biodegradation and fibrous reinforcement was developed. In the proposed model, the compressive deformation due to biodegradation was regarded as being caused by an additional equivalent stress. Considering the effect of biodegradation, an evolution equation of the equivalent stress was proposed, and a plastic volumetric strain hardening law was developed. A fibrous reinforcement parameter was introduced, which was associated with the fiber content, stress state, and plastic shear strain of MSW. A plastic shear strain hardening law was developed to model the fibrous reinforcement. Based on the associated flow rule and two plastic strain hardening laws, the proposed model was established. The proposed model well simulated the hardening properties of MSW, as evidenced by the stress‒strain curves and the consistent, nonlinear increase in volumetric strain with axial strain. The differences in the shear strength and volumetric deformation due to the confining stress and fiber content were also well simulated by the model. Furthermore, the model predictions accurately reflected the findings of experiments conducted over a period of 10 years. Finally, parametric investigations were used to calibrate this proposed model, which can well characterize the long-term MSW mechanical behavior.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"617-632"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142642579","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Suifeng Wang, Hideaki Yasuhara, Li Zhuang, Xianyu Zhao, Liping Zhang, Tao Wang
{"title":"A Novel Hydro-Grain-Texture Model to Unveil the Impact of Mineral Grain Anisotropy on Fluid-Driven Cracking Processes in Crystalline Rock","authors":"Suifeng Wang, Hideaki Yasuhara, Li Zhuang, Xianyu Zhao, Liping Zhang, Tao Wang","doi":"10.1002/nag.3888","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3888","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The anisotropy at the grain scale significantly impacts cracking behavior of crystalline rocks. However, the anisotropy of mineral structure, especially the grain shape and orientation has been inadequately addressed in studies on hydraulic fracturing. To bridge this gap, this paper introduces a coupled hydro-grain-texture model (HGTM) based on discrete element model (DEM) that investigates the influence of grain shape and orientation on fluid-driven cracking processes in crystalline rock. The HGTM can consider the different mineral grain shapes and orientations by changing the aspect ratio and rotating coordinate axes. Our studies covered six distinct in-situ stresses, three grain shapes, and five grain orientations. Initially, we present a comprehensive examination of the microcracking processes of hydraulic fracturing. Then the influences of in-situ stress, grain shape, and grain orientation on cracking processes were studied. The results underscore that both mineral grain and in-situ stress interplay to influence the hydraulic fracturing of the crystalline rocks. The proposed HGTM can well mimic the propagation process of hydraulic fracturing by comparing with the experimental results and the results reveal that hydraulic fracturing in crystalline rocks is a highly complex process. This research clarifies the complex interplay between grain texture and hydraulic fracturing, offering invaluable insights for optimizing stimulation practices.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"555-574"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142597495","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Formulation and Implicit Numerical Integration of a Kinematic Hardening Model for Unsaturated Soils","authors":"Lluís Monforte, Mohamed Rouainia","doi":"10.1002/nag.3878","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3878","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Currently, our understanding of material-scale deterioration resulting from meteorologically induced variations in pore water pressure and its significant impact on infrastructure slopes is limited. To bridge this knowledge gap, we have developed an extended kinematic hardening constitutive model for unsaturated soils that refines our understanding of weather-driven deterioration mechanisms in heterogeneous clay soils. This model has the capability of predicting the irrecoverable degradation of strength and stiffness that has been shown to occur when soils undergo wetting and drying cycles. The model is equipped with a fully coupled and hysteretic water retention curve and a hysteretic loading–collapse curve and has the capability to predict the irrecoverable degradation of strength and stiffness that occurs during cyclic loading of soils. Here, we employ a fully implicit stress integration technique and give particular emphasis to deriving a consistent tangent operator, which includes the linearisation of the retention curve. The proposed algorithm is evaluated for efficiency and performance by simulating various stress and strain-driven triaxial paths, and the accuracy of the integration technique is evaluated through the use of convergence curves.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"514-540"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142597485","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiao-Hong Wang, Meng-Chen Yue, Zhi-Feng Liu, Wei-Dong Cao, Yong Wang, Jun Hu, Chang-Hao Xiao, Yao-Yong Li
{"title":"Numerical Strategy on the Grid Orientation Effect in the Simulation for Two-Phase Flow in Porous Media by Using the Adaptive Artificial Viscosity Method","authors":"Xiao-Hong Wang, Meng-Chen Yue, Zhi-Feng Liu, Wei-Dong Cao, Yong Wang, Jun Hu, Chang-Hao Xiao, Yao-Yong Li","doi":"10.1002/nag.3886","DOIUrl":"10.1002/nag.3886","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>In the context of numerical simulators for multiphase flow in porous media, there exists a long-standing issue known as the grid orientation effect (GOE), wherein different numerical solutions can be obtained when considering grids with different orientations under certain unfavorable conditions. The GOE is relevant to the instability near displacement fronts. If numerical oscillations accompanied by sharp fronts are not adequately suppressed, the GOE occurs. To reduce or even eliminate the GOE, we propose augmenting adaptive artificial viscosity in the process of solving the saturation equation. It has been demonstrated that appropriate artificial viscosity can effectively reduce or even eliminate the GOE. The proposed numerical method can be easily applied in practical engineering problems.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":13786,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics","volume":"49 2","pages":"541-554"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2024-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142598204","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}