Fracture Simulation in Crystalline Rocks

By: Ehsan Ghazvinion

Abstract

The bonded-particle model is an approach in computational modeling which is able to simulate degradation by initiating and tracking of fractures. Numerical models simulate damage in material either directly such as the bonded-particle model, or indirectly by assuming the material as a continuum and distributing the weakness in material by constitutive relations. The ability of the bonded-particle model to initiate, propagate and track fractures, makes it a suitable tool for understanding and studying damage in rocks. The accuracy of the bonded-particle model in the simulation of laboratory tests will be discussed in this presentation.