• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.243-254
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• 2014

The present study introduces a numerical technique to simulate the mechanical behavior of brittle rock, based on a grain-based model combined with Universal Distinct Element Code (GBM-UDEC). Using the technique, the microstructure of rock sample was represented as an assembly of deformable polygonal grains, and the failure process with the evolution of micro tensile cracks under compression was examined. In terms of the characteristics of strength and deformation, the behaviors of the simulated model showed good agreement with the observations in the laboratory-scale experiments of rock.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.235-252
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• 2016

This study presents a methodology to reproduce the mechanical behavior of isotropic or transversely isotropic rock using the polygonal grain-based distinct element model. A numerical technique to monitor the evolution of micro-cracks during the simulation was developed in the present study, which enabled us to examine the contribution of tensile cracking and shear cracking to the progressive process of the failure. The numerical results demonstrated good agreement with general observations from rock specimens in terms of the behavior and the evolution of micro-cracks, suggesting the capability of the model to represent the mechanical behavior of rock. We also carried out a parametric study as a fundamental work to examine the relationships between the microscopic properties of the constituents and the macroscopic behavior of the model. Depending on the micro-properties, the model exhibited a variety of responses to the external load in terms of the strength and deformation characteristics. In addition, a numerical technique to reproduce the transversely isotropic rock was suggested and applied to Asan gneiss from Korea. The behavior of the numerical model was in good agreement with the results obtained in the laboratory-scale experiments of the rock.