The extended finite element method (XFEM) for discontinuous rock masses

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to achieve numerical simulation of discontinuous rock masses.Design methodology approach - The extended finite element method (XFEM) was used. Discontinuities (such as joints, faults, and material interfaces) are contained in the elements, thus the mesh can be...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Engineering computations 2011-01, Vol.28 (3), p.340-369
Main Author: Yu, T.T.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Approximation
Computer simulation
Discontinuity
Enrichment
Fault lines
Finite element analysis
Finite element method
Interfaces
Materials science
Mathematical analysis
Mathematical models
Mechanical properties
Mesh generation
Methods
Numerical analysis
Rock
Rocks
Simulation
Studies
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to achieve numerical simulation of discontinuous rock masses.Design methodology approach - The extended finite element method (XFEM) was used. Discontinuities (such as joints, faults, and material interfaces) are contained in the elements, thus the mesh can be generated without taking into account the existence of discontinuities. When one element contains no discontinuity, the displacement function is degenerated into that of the conventional finite element. For the element containing discontinuities, the standard displacement-based approximation is enriched by incorporating level-set-based enrichment functions that model the discontinuities, and an element subdivision procedure is used to integrate the domain of the element.Findings - Mesh generation can be simplified considerably and high-quality meshes can be obtained. A solution with good precision can also be achieved. It is concluded that the XFEM technique is especially suitable in simulating discontinuous rock masses problems.Research limitations implications - Crack initiation and propagation should be considered in further studies.Practical implications - The paper presents a very useful numerical method for a geotechnical engineering problem that has the ability to simulate the failure process of discontinuous rock masses. The method is expected to be used widely in the deformation and stability analysis of complicated rock masses.Originality value - The paper provides a new numerical method for discontinuous rock masses that is very convenient for pre-processing.
ISSN:0264-4401
1758-7077
DOI:10.1108/02644401111118178