International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences最新文献

{"title":"Multi-scale quantitative analysis of grotto sandstone degradation considering inorganic salt phase transitions","authors":"Sicheng Lin ,&nbsp;Luqi Wang ,&nbsp;Wengang Zhang ,&nbsp;Shuo Wang ,&nbsp;Zihua Xiong ,&nbsp;Siwei Jiang ,&nbsp;Gang Zhao","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106284","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106284","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The salt deterioration of the surface and host rock mass of grottoes poses a serious challenge to the protection of grottoes. The existing indoor experimental research on salt weathering mainly focuses on characterizing the deterioration process. It is challenging to realize the multi-scale quantitative analysis of the complex salt weathering process, especially the lack of systematic research on time factors and inorganic salt phase transition. This study selected the fresh sandstone on the south bank of Baoding Mountain in Dazu and performed the dry-wet cycle test of mixed salt solution by a multi-scale experimental method. The experimental variables included concentration and cycle times. Combined with acoustic emission monitoring technology, qualitatively and quantitatively studied the time-dependent deterioration of grotto sandstone under salt weathering, and the water-salt system revealed the key mechanism of time-dependent deterioration of Big Buddha Bay rock mass. The low concentration mixed salt has little effect on sandstone samples due to the limited number of cycles. The image comparison analysis shows that the deterioration degree of the sample at 1.5 mol/L (referred to as 1.5 M) concentration is similar to that of the existing grottoes, which can effectively simulate the salt weathering in the actual environment. When the concentration increases to 2.0 M, the salt crystal penetrates the sample, and the erosion depth can reach 4.5 mm. The acoustic emission analysis shows that the proportion of tensile cracks is always higher than that of shear cracks. Under the action of dry-wet cycles, as the number of cycles increases, the failure mode of the sample gradually changes from shear-dominated to tension-dominated. The phase change of inorganic salt on grotto sandstone shows that sodium sulfate caused significant volume expansion and crystallization stress due to different hydrate phase changes, and the damage was the most significant.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106284"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145093760","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Elastic and creep behavior of fractured shale caprocks in the presence of argon and CO2","authors":"Arash Kamali-Asl,&nbsp;Anthony R. Kovscek","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106279","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106279","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A series of triaxial stress, undrained creep tests is reported for fractured/micro-cracked shale specimens from the Eagle Ford formation using argon and CO₂ as the pore fluids. Each creep test was composed of a 2-day “loading” creep and a 1-day “recovery” creep stage. Hysteresis cycles and ultrasonic velocities were collected at the beginning and end of each “loading” creep stage. In addition, we conducted a 7-day CO₂-injection test on one of the samples and investigated the hysteresis behavior every 24 h. No significant changes in hysteresis were observed after day 2 of the longer-term CO₂ creep test, however, the Young's modulus during unloading (upon concluding the creep test) was notably greater compared to the unloading Young's modulus of the 2-day CO₂ test. We further implemented a conceptual creep model to decompose the elastic, plastic, viscoelastic, and viscoplastic deformations during/after creep tests. Power-law and Burger's creep models were used to predict the longer-term behavior of these specimens. While fractures/micro-cracks were abundant, the samples exhibited moderate-to-large initial Young's modulus and low-to-moderate initial creep deformation compared to typical shale rocks. We observed smaller Young's modulus for the CO₂ tests, as confirmed by a greater compliance parameter B in the power-law model and lower E₁ parameter in Burger's model. Creep strain exhibited positive and negative correlations with the power-law exponent, n, and parameter η₁ from Burger's model, respectively. Larger viscoelastic deformations were observed during CO₂ tests, as confirmed by the larger n and smaller η₁ values, respectively. Lastly, the dynamic Poisson's ratios (obtained from ultrasonic velocities) were significantly larger than their static counterparts, while the difference in dynamic Young's moduli during loading and unloading was negligible.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106279"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145093826","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mapping the surface intensity of discontinuities in rock slopes using stochastic geometry","authors":"O. Casas ,&nbsp;G. Beltrán ,&nbsp;M. Bohorquez ,&nbsp;R. Hernandez-Carrillo ,&nbsp;O. Rosada","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106271","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106271","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Slope stability in rock masses can be controlled by weak zones associated with discontinuities, their orientation, opening, persistence, spacing, and intensity. Since the intensity of discontinuities on rock slope surfaces can be complex to estimate, conventional methods of analysis assume homogeneous distributions by setting a constant value determined from compass and tape measurements in some sampled sectors of the slope. To account for the non-homogeneous nature of the rock mass on the entire slope surface, we propose to combine spatial statistics, data collection with short-range photogrammetry, and three-dimensional image analysis techniques to estimate and map discontinuity intensity. Thus, the novelty of this proposal is a different conceptualization of the phenomena, which in turn allows using new ideas and tools for its analysis. Given that it is not possible to predict where discontinuities occur, the discontinuities are formulated as geometric objects with random locations. Thus, they can be modelled through the stochastic geometry theoretical framework. It is assumed that the discontinuities are lines, and a sequence of points for representing each of them is used to make possible some computations. To accomplish this, each discontinuity set, defined as a set of lines, is represented by a spatial point pattern. Where the intensity function varies spatially, the non-parametric kernel is used to estimate the intensity, and the results are mapped for validation. The methodology is applied to two rock masses near Bogotá, Colombia, with promising results for discontinuity intensity slope zoning. These findings are relevant for application in road infrastructure and mining projects.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106271"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145093793","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling field-enriched finite element method for thermo-poroelastic fractured rock mass and its application","authors":"Linyuan Han ,&nbsp;Xiaoping Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106276","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106276","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this paper, a coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical field-enriched finite element method is developed to simulate the cracking behaviors in thermo-poroelastic fractured rock mass. The governing equations of displacement, fluid flow and temperature are based on the thermo-poroelastic theory, and the coupled relationships of these three physical fields are fully incorporated in the governing equations. The unified field variable is introduced to characterize the crack position, crack initiation and propagation, and to describe the damage-dependent physical parameters in the coupled governing equation system. The coupled multiphysics governing equations are solved by the staggered Newton-Raphson iterative algorithm. The accuracy of the proposed method is carefully validated by six problems in the aspects of analytical solutions, previous numerical solutions and FEM solutions. Additionally, the performance of the proposed method for simulating thermal-hydraulically induced crack initiation and propagation is validated and compared with the COMSOL results. Then, the proposed method is employed to predict the deformation of the tunnel surrounding rock under multiphysics coupling conditions. Finally, the application of the proposed method in geothermal extraction that considers different well patterns and fracture distributions has been realized. The numerical results have shown that the proposed method is capable of accurately simulating the crack initiation and propagation, predicting the deformation of tunnel surrounding rock, and simulating and optimizing the mining process of geothermal resources.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106276"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145093874","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Modeling of water-injected coal with fracture-pore structure and experimental study of gas-water two-phase transport characteristics","authors":"Jing Han ,&nbsp;Zhen Liu ,&nbsp;He Yang ,&nbsp;Zhe Zhou ,&nbsp;Qingbo Gu","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106272","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106272","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Predicting the dynamic permeability of water-injected coal is essential for accurately guiding the development of water-injection technologies in coal seams. However, the impact of fracture morphology and complexity on the gas-water two-phase seepage process remains insufficiently explored. This study employed fractal theory to model a tree-like fractal bifurcation network that characterizes the fracture-pore network expansion caused by water injection. The distinct seepage behaviors of adsorption pores, seepage pores, and fractures were considered, and fractal dimensions were introduced to represent changes in pore size distribution and fracture aperture during water injection. Based on these considerations, a dynamic permeability model for water-injected coal with a complex network structure was developed, ensuring that all parameters retained explicit physical significance, free from empirical constants. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis and gray correlation analysis revealed that the number of network bifurcations, tortuosity, and roughness had the greatest influence on permeability. Critical pore diameters for effective and ineffective seepage regions were identified, with experimental results indicating that these diameters were indirectly affected by confining stress and water injection pressure. Changes in pore diameter distribution and water saturation demonstrated that increasing confining stress or reducing water injection pressure led to higher fractal dimensions for pore size distribution and tortuosity, while decreasing the fractal dimension for fracture aperture. This process also caused some bound pores and seepage pores to interchange.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106272"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145060788","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Blast-induced fracture mechanisms and fragmentation characteristics of brittle materials under anisotropic stress fields","authors":"Yuanquan Xu ,&nbsp;Ming Tao ,&nbsp;Rui Zhao ,&nbsp;Lei Huang ,&nbsp;Haibo Li","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106275","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106275","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In deep rock blasting excavation, in-situ stress significantly influences the fragmentation effect. Even at the same burial depth, complex tectonic movements result in uneven horizontal stress fields, subjecting the rock being excavated to anisotropic stress conditions. In this study, blasting tests are conducted with various lateral pressure coefficients, using a self-designed experimental system. A point-cloud–based method for three-dimensional (3D) blast-crater reconstruction and parameter calculation is proposed, facilitating visual modeling of craters and precise volume measurement. 3D numerical models are established to investigate the damage-zone evolution and stress distribution during the failure process of concrete. Finally, field blasting tests are conducted in an underground mine. The experimental results show that the optimized triangulated irregular network and contour models effectively depict the 3D morphological characteristics of the blast crater, with the combined crater from double-borehole blasting exhibiting a double-cone flattened shape. With the increase in the disparity between the horizontal and vertical stresses, the area, diameter, and volume of the crater, as well as fragment size and number, decrease, whereas the opening angle gradually increases. The numerical results indicate that there exists a threshold value for the lateral pressure coefficient (0.5&lt; <em>γ</em> &lt; 0.8) at which the resulting single-sided crater becomes circular. The parameters and morphology of blast craters are determined by the flaky failure zones, which are significantly influenced by static stresses. Short delays alter the blasting effect of the later-detonated borehole, inhibiting the formation of circumferential cracks and promoting the propagation of radial cracks. Field-test results indicate that an increase in the horizontal stress leads to a significant rise in the quantity of large-sized fragments generated by blasting, validating the reliability of the model tests and numerical simulations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106275"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145060936","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A multiscale peridynamic simulation on thermal-mechanical coupling behavior and damage failure mechanism of granite","authors":"Heng Li ,&nbsp;Sheng-Qi Yang ,&nbsp;Rui Yong ,&nbsp;Shi-Gui Du ,&nbsp;Bo-Wen Sun ,&nbsp;Su-Sheng Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106256","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106256","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In underground rock engineering, the propagation and coalescence of cracks in surrounding rock under high-temperature conditions exhibit highly complex mechanical behaviors. To address the challenge of simultaneously considering thermal damage and nonlinear mechanical responses within the peridynamics (PD) framework, this study proposes a novel computational framework for simulating the mechanical properties and damage mechanisms of granite at elevated temperatures. The framework integrates a thermal-mechanical coupling model comprising a nonlinear mechanical layer and a thermal damage layer, which are linked via a multi-layer computational strategy. To represent mineral-scale heterogeneity, a multi-parameter shuffle algorithm is incorporated, along with a nonlinear temperature evolution method and an OpenMP-based parallel computing strategy, significantly enhancing computational efficiency. The framework is calibrated and validated using laboratory test results, and analyses are conducted at both macroscopic and microscopic scales. The results indicate that increasing temperature markedly reduces the peak strength of granite, increases plastic deformation, and promotes the formation of a dense and interconnected thermal crack network, which is the primary cause of compressive strength degradation. Furthermore, the dominant failure mechanism shifts from stress concentration to the development of a thermal crack network, with the prevailing crack type transitioning from shear-dominated to tensile-dominated, ultimately producing a mixed fracture pattern. This study not only advances the numerical simulation of high temperature rock behavior but also provides a theoretical basis for understanding the failure mechanisms of high temperature rock masses in deep geothermal engineering construction.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106256"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050098","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Factors controlling injection-induced rupture of intersecting faults during geological sequestration of CO2","authors":"Meng Cao,&nbsp;Jonny Rutqvist,&nbsp;Yves Guglielmi,&nbsp;Abdullah Cihan,&nbsp;Stanislav Glubokovskikh,&nbsp;Preston Jordan,&nbsp;Matthew Reagan,&nbsp;Jens Birkholzer","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106250","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106250","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study addresses coupled multiphase fluid flow and geomechanics effects on potential fault activation associated with subsurface CO₂ injection around intersecting faults. An enhanced fault-representation model is used to capture geomechanical responses of two intersecting faults with finite length during CO₂ injection. The faults are embedded in a strike-slip stress regime of a caprock-reservoir-basement system with the faults represented by zero-thickness interfaces with adjacent finite-thickness damage zones. A sensitivity analysis is conducted to study the effect of fault permeability, slip-weakening behavior, well location relative to the orientation of faults, and well placement (the number and location of injection wells). Five metrics (pressure, CO₂ plume, shear state on the fault, as well as shear displacement and stress path at selected fault monitoring points) are selected to assess CO₂ migration and reactivation of intersecting faults. The results show that induced ruptures are favored by low permeability faults due to high pressure buildup and by slip-weakening behavior resulting from fault strength reduction. The location of one injection well relative to fault orientation determines the magnitude of changes in effective normal stress and shear stress, affecting the location of induced ruptures. Well placement (two injection wells used in the paper) dominates pressure diffusion around the intersection and tips of faults. This redistributes changes in effective normal stress caused by each injection well, influencing the spatial distribution of ruptures along faults. A larger injection volume induces far-field ruptures that are controlled by stress transfer within the injection layer. The findings presented here can provide valuable insights into engineering operations for a long-term, safe, and reliable geologic CO₂ storage.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106250"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145049515","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Crystallographic constraints on microcrack dynamics in granite: Insights from in-situ microscopic characterization of crack network propagation","authors":"Zhendong Cui ,&nbsp;Jianyong Zhang ,&nbsp;Pathegama Gamage Ranjith ,&nbsp;Xiao Li","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106278","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106278","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Accurate prediction of crack behavior in granite is essential for advancing geological engineering, geothermal energy extraction, and nuclear waste disposal. However, the microcrack dynamics governing fracture initiation and propagation remain poorly understood due to the complex interplay between mineral heterogeneity and local stress fields. Here, we reveal the fundamental mechanisms of microcrack evolution in granite at the mineral texture scale through in situ scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations under shear and tensile loading. By integrating energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), backscattered electron (BSE) imaging, and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), we uncover how microstructural features—such as mineral boundaries, grain defects, and crystallographic orientation differences—control crack initiation and growth paths. Our results demonstrate that local stress field disturbances lead to crack branching, deflection, and en-echelon formations, with intergranular and transgranular fracture modes dictated by grain-scale heterogeneities. These findings provide a mechanistic framework for understanding fracture propagation in crystalline rocks, offering critical insights for refining rock mechanics models and designing stable geological structures in energy and environmental applications.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106278"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050029","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Direct acoustic emission (AE) monitoring and micromechanical damage modelling of the Himalayan sandstones under conventional triaxial loading: petrographic integration and model advancement","authors":"Shubham Chajed,&nbsp;Aditya Singh","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106260","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmms.2025.106260","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study presents a direct contact-based acoustic emission (AE) monitoring approach to quantify rock damage under triaxial compression loading. With its application on five geologically diverse Himalayan sandstones to capture damage evolution using three AE parameters: event counts (<em>E</em>_<em>AE</em>), ringdown counts (<em>R</em>_<em>AE</em>), and energy (<em>U</em>_<em>AE</em>). The study reveals an inverse relationship between rock strength and critical damage: higher-strength rocks exhibit a lower magnitude of AE-based critical damage <em>(d</em>_<em>AE</em><em>)</em>_<em>c</em> and vice versa. Moreover, the <em>(d</em>_<em>AE</em><em>)</em>_<em>c</em> to the sandstones decreases exponentially with increasing confining pressure (<em>σ</em>_<em>3</em>). A generalized exponential regression model was proposed to predict critical damage using <em>σ</em>_<em>3</em> and experimental AE-based damage based on <em>E</em>_<em>AE</em>, <em>R</em>_<em>AE</em>, and <em>U</em>_<em>AE</em>, achieving <em>R</em>² values of 0.58–0.91, 0.61–0.99, and 0.57–0.97, respectively. Among these, <em>R</em>_<em>AE</em> and <em>U</em>_<em>AE</em>-based models demonstrated superior predictive accuracy compared to <em>E</em>_<em>AE</em>. The derived critical damage was integrated into a modified AE-based micromechanical model, which was evaluated through 72 simulation scenarios accounting for variations in <em>σ</em>_<em>3</em>, AE parameters, and sandstone types. The model effectively captured regional geological variability, <em>σ</em>_<em>3</em> influence, and nonlinear stress-strain behaviour, including pre- and post-peak responses, Class II-Class I failure mode, and hardening–softening transitions. Additionally, the study introduced a multivariate regression framework that links petrographic indices with critical damage under varying confinement. Results identify <em>P</em>_<em>d</em>, GAR, and <em>P</em>_<em>c</em> as the most influential features for <em>R</em>_<em>AE</em>-based modelling. These offer a new pathway to connect rock microstructure with mechanical behaviour. The findings advance the microcrack-driven damage constitutive model and provide a predictive tool for safely designing underground structures.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54941,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences","volume":"195 ","pages":"Article 106260"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2025-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145049516","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}