| 1. |
- Castro-Filgueira, Uxia, et al.
(author)
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Particle flow code simulation of intact and fissured granitic rock samples
- 2020
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In: Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. - : Elsevier BV. - 1674-7755. ; 12:5, s. 960-974
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study presents a calibration process of three-dimensional particle flow code (PFC3D) simulation of intact and fissured granite samples. First, laboratory stress-strain response from triaxial testing of intact and fissured granite samples is recalled. Then, PFC3D is introduced, with focus on the bonded particle models (BPM). After that, we present previous studies where intact rock is simulated by means of flat-joint approaches, and how improved accuracy was gained with the help of parametric studies. Then, models of the pre-fissured rock specimens were generated, including modeled fissures in the form of "smooth joint" type contacts. Finally, triaxial testing simulations of 1 + 2 and 2 + 3 jointed rock specimens were performed. Results show that both elastic behavior and the peak strength levels are closely matched, without any additional fine tuning of micro-mechanical parameters. Concerning the post-failure behavior, models reproduce the trends of decreasing dilation with increasing confinement and plasticity. However, the dilation values simulated are larger than those observed in practice. This is attributed to the difficulty in modeling some phenomena of fissured rock behaviors, such as rock piece corner crushing with dust production and interactions between newly formed shear bands or axial splitting cracks with pre-existing joints.
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| 2. |
- Chan, T., et al.
(author)
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DECOVALEX III BMT3/BENCHPAR WP4 : The thermo-hydro-mechanical responses to a glacial cycle and their potential implications for deep geological disposal of nuclear fuel waste in a fractured crystalline rock mass
- 2005
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In: International Journal of Rock Mechanics And Mining Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1365-1609 .- 1873-4545. ; 42:5-6, s. 805-827
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A number of studies related to past and on-going deep repository performance assessments have identified glaciation/ deglaciation as major future events in the next few hundred thousand years capable of causing significant impact on the long term performance of the repository system. Benchmark Test 3 (BMT3) of the international DECOVALEX III project has been designed to provide an illustrative example that explores the mechanical and hydraulic response of a fractured crystalline rock mass to a period of glaciation. The primary purpose of this numerical study is to investigate whether transient events associated with a glacial cycle could significantly influence the performance of a deep geological repository in a crystalline Shield setting. A conceptual site-scale (tens of kilometres) hydro-mechanical (HM) model was assembled based primarily on site-specific litho-structural, hydrogeological and geomechanical data from the Whiteshell Research Area in the Canadian Shield, with simplification and generalization. Continental glaciological modelling of the Laurentide ice sheet through the last glacial cycle lasting approximately 100,000 years suggests that this site was glaciated at about 60 ka and between about 22.5 and 11 ka before present with maximum ice sheet thickness reaching 2500 m and maximum basal water pressure head reaching 2000m. The ice-sheet/drainage model was scaled down to generate spatially and temporally variable hydraulic and mechanical glaciated surface boundary conditions for site-scale subsurface HM modelling and permafrost modelling. Under extreme periglacial conditions permafrost was able to develop down to the assumed 500-m repository horizon. Two- and three-dimensional coupled HM finite-element simulations indicate: during ice-sheet advance there is rapid rise in hydraulic head, high transient hydraulic gradients and high groundwater velocities 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than under nonglacial conditions; surface water recharges deeper than under nonglacial conditions; upon ice-sheet retreat, the gradients reverse; fracture zone network geometry, interconnectivity and hydraulic properties significantly influence flow domain response; residual elevated heads are preserved for 10,000s in the low-diffusivity rock; and no hydraulic jacking or shear failure occurs at depth. It was found that transient coupled modelling is necessary to capture the essence of glacial effects on Performance Assessment. Model dimensionality also significantly affects simulated results.
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| 3. |
- Darcel, C., et al.
(author)
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Rock mass effective properties from a DFN approach
- 2018
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In: 2nd International Discrete Fracture Network Engineering Conference, DFNE 2018. - : American Rock Mechanics Association (ARMA).
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Rock mass mechanical properties are strongly controlled by the fractures they contain. Their determination raises strong issues for many rock-engineering applications, like underground repository safety assessment, support design, slope stability or mine caving. To compensate the impossibility to perform direct in-situ measures of these properties at appropriate scales, empirical approaches classically aim to determine the rock mass equivalent properties from simple indicators. Here we propose an approach based on the complete representation of the rock mass as an intact rock with a population of discrete fractures through it (the Discrete Fracture Network). The core of the approach is the definition, at the rock mass scale, of the deformation induced by each fracture locally, including the fracture mechanical and geometrical parameters, the remote stress conditions and the interactions with the rest of the fracture population. Depending on the conditions, the resulting scaling and anisotropic effects can be critical. The method is applied to the Forsmark site in Sweden. We show that two main scaling regimes occur, where the shift from the one to the other is controlled by the ratio between the intact rock modulus, the typical fracture stiffness and the DFN size distribution. Beyond the scaling issue we quantify the resulting level of anisotropy.
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| 4. |
- Davy, P., et al.
(author)
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DFN, why, how and what for, concepts, theories and issues
- 2018
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In: 2nd International Discrete Fracture Network Engineering Conference, DFNE 2018. - : American Rock Mechanics Association (ARMA).
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- DFN – Discrete Fracture Network – is primarily a modeling framework for fractured geological systems that aims to integrate field data into simulations of flow and/or deformation. It is complementary to, or competing with, continuum methods with both advantages of easily integrating the statistical properties of fracture networks, and of not assuming any homogenization scale. The core element is the DFN conceptual model, which makes a functional link between data from different sources, prior knowledge and medium models. We discuss some fundamental issues about this conceptual model, namely (i) the upscaling of small-scale measurements to site-scale relationships, (ii) intrinsic variability versus geological determinism, (iii) the way to incorporate a priori knowledge, (iv) the transformation of a statistical description into a medium model, (v) the critical characteristics (length scales, scaling laws or physical properties) of fractures for a given DFN application. The main product of the DFN conceptual model is medium models, whose role is to extrapolate/interpolate data with a faithful representation of the geological system. The way in which fracture correlations are taken into account, or not, in the generation process plays an important control on the connectivity and flow properties of medium models.
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| 5. |
- Davy, P., et al.
(author)
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Elastic Properties of Fractured Rock Masses With Frictional Properties and Power Law Fracture Size Distributions
- 2018
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In: Journal of Geophysical Research - Solid Earth. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 2169-9313 .- 2169-9356. ; 123:8, s. 6521-6539
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We derive the relationships that link the general elastic properties of rock masses to the geometrical properties of fracture networks, with a special emphasis to the case of frictional crack surfaces. We extend the well-known elastic solutions for free-slipping cracks to fractures whose plane resistance is defined by an elastic fracture (shear) stiffness k(s) and a stick-slip Coulomb threshold. A complete set of analytical solutions have been derived for (i) the shear displacement in the fracture plane for stresses below the slip threshold and above, (ii) the partitioning between the resistances of the fracture plane on the one hand and of the elastic matrix on the other hand, and (iii) the stress conditions to trigger slip. All the expressions have been checked with numerical simulations. The Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio were also derived for a population of fractures. They are controlled both by the total fracture surface for fractures larger than the stiffness length l(S) (defined by k(s) and the intact matrix elastic properties) and by the percolation parameter of smaller fractures. These results were applied to power law fracture size distributions, which are likely relevant to geological cases. We show that if the fracture size exponent is in the range -3 to -4, which corresponds to a wide range of geological fracture networks, the elastic properties of the bulk rock are almost exclusively controlled by k(s) and the stiffness length, meaning that the fractures of size l(S) play a major role in the definition of the elastic properties.
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| 6. |
- De Simone, Silvia, et al.
(author)
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Equivalent Biot and Skempton Poroelastic Coefficients for a Fractured Rock Mass from a DFN Approach
- 2023
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In: Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering. - : Springer Nature. - 0723-2632 .- 1434-453X. ; 56:12, s. 8907-8925
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A quantitative and analytical approach is adopted to estimate two important parameters for coupled hydro-mechanical analysis at the scale of a fractured rock mass, namely the equivalent Biot effective stress coefficient α¯ and Skempton pore pressure coefficient B¯ . We derive formal expressions that estimate the two equivalent poroelastic coefficients from the properties of both the porous intact rock and the discrete fracture network, which includes fractures with different orientation, size, and mechanical properties. The coefficients are equivalent in the sense that they allow effectively predicting the volumetric deformation of the fluid-saturated fractured rock under an applied load in drained and undrained conditions. The formal expressions are validated against results from fully coupled hydro-mechanical simulations on systems with explicit representation of deformable fractures and rock blocks. We find that the coefficients are highly anisotropic as they largely vary with fracture orientations with respect to the applied stress tensor. For a given set of fracture and rock properties, B¯ increases with the ratio of normal to average stress undergone by the fractures, while the opposite occurs for α¯ . Additionally, both α¯ and B¯ increase with fracture density, which directly impacts the deformation caused by a load in undrained conditions. Because the effective stress variation is proportional to the applied load by (1 - α¯ B¯) , a factor that partly compensates for the decrease in equivalent rock stiffness caused by the fractures, a fully saturated fractured rock may deform less than an intact rock in undrained conditions, while the opposite occurs in dry conditions.
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| 7. |
- Doolaeghe, D., et al.
(author)
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Controls on fracture openness and reactivation in Forsmark, Sweden
- 2023
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In: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Nature. - 2045-2322. ; 13:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In crystalline bedrock, the open fraction of the fracture network constitutes the main pathways for fluids. Many observations point out that the state of stress influences the open fraction, likely indicating recent reactivation. But how this occurs is still unresolved. We analyse the conditions for fracture reactivation from fracture data collected in the uppermost 1 km of bedrock in Forsmark, Sweden. The open fraction is mainly correlated to the stress acting normally on the fracture but even away from critical failure, leading us to analyse the potential fluid pressure required for reactivation, P-c. We observe that 100% of the fractures are open when P-c is hydrostatic, and the ratio decreases exponentially to a plateau of similar to 17% when P-c is lithostatic and above. Exceptions are the oldest fractures, having a low open fraction independent of P-c. We suggest that these results reflect past pressure build-ups, potentially related to recent glaciations, and developing only if the preexisting open fraction is large enough.
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| 8. |
- Estevez-Ventosa, Xian, et al.
(author)
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Scale effects on triaxial peak and residual strength of granite and preliminary PFC3D models
- 2022
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In: Geomechanics and Engineering. - : TECHNO-PRESS. - 2005-307X .- 2092-6219. ; 31:5, s. 461-476
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Research studies on the scale effect on triaxial strength of intact rocks are scarce, being more common those in uniaxial strength. In this paper, the authors present and briefly interpret the peak and residual strength trends on a series of triaxial tests on different size specimens (30 mm to 84 mm diameter) of an intact granitic rock at confinements ranging from 0 to 15 MPa. Peak strength tends to grow from smaller to standard-size samples (54 mm) and then diminishes for larger values at low confinement. However, a slight change in strength is observed at higher confinements. Residual strength is observed to be much less size-dependent. Additionally, this study introduces preliminary modelling approaches of these laboratory observations with the help of three-dimensional particle flow code (PFC3D) simulations based on bonded particle models (BPM). Based on previous studies, two modelling approaches have been followed. In the first one, the maximum and minimum particle diameter (Dmax and Dmin) are kept constant irrespective of the sample size, whereas in the second one, the resolution (number of particles within the sample or phi v) was kept constant. Neither of these approaches properly represent the observations in actual laboratory tests, even if both of them show some interesting capabilities reported in this document. Eventually, some suggestions are provided to proceed towards improving modelling approaches to represent observed scale effects.
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| 9. |
- Figueiredo, B., et al.
(author)
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Effects of the initial stress and spalling strength on spalling around deposition holes and tunnels
- 2023
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In: IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. - : IOP Publishing. - 1755-1307 .- 1755-1315.
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Spalling in the deposition holes and tunnel stability are of concern for the design of deep geological repositories for spent nuclear fuel. A 3D numerical stress model, including a single deposition tunnel and multiple deposition holes to analyse the potential for spalling resulting from the excavation phase, was developed for the proposed repository location at the Forsmark site. Several potential initial stress field cases and spalling strengths of the intact rock were considered. The magnitudes of the factor of safety, the spalling depth, the minor principal stress, and the differential stress were evaluated. The results showed that no spalling in the central deposition hole is indicated for the most likely stress field, and the occurrence of spalling and the spalling depth are minimised for a maximum horizontal stress aligned approximately parallel to the tunnel axis. For spalling occurrence and depth of spalling, the magnitude of the maximum horizontal stress is more critical than its orientation, and the spalling strength is more critical than the magnitude of the maximum horizontal stress. No instability problems were indicated in the vicinity of the roof for all analysed stress cases.
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| 10. |
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