Experimental and numerical studies on mechanical behavior of discontinuous material

Abstract

The mechanical behaviors of a discontinuous rock mass are strongly affected by discontinuities included in the rock mass. The surrounding rock mass around an underground cavern is sub-jected to compressive stress even after the cavern excavation. In this case, the shear properties of the discontinuity play an importantroll in the macroscopic behavior of the rock mass. Thus, the studies on the shear properties are well carried out from not only experimental but also numerical points of view so as to clarify the behaviors of the rock mass. However, there is few studies in which the mechanism of the alteration of the shear properties under various conditions is discussed. In this article, the experimental and numerical studies in terms of the material having a single discontinuity is conducted in order to seize the mechanism of the alteration of the shear properties. In the numerical study, the alteration is modeled by the concept thatthe surface ofthe discontinuity can be worn away with increasing the load which is applied to the material. Through the comparison between the experimental and numerical studies, it is turned out that the macroscopic behaviors of the rock mass are influenced by the friction of discontinuity.