Application of the expanded distinct element method for the study of crack growth in rock-like materials under uniaxial compression

The expanded distinct element method (EDEM) was used to investigate the crack growth in rock-like materials under uniaxial compression. The tensile-shear failure criterion and the Griffith failure criterion were implanted into the EDEM to determine the initiation and propagation of pre-existing cracks, respectively. Uniaxial compression experiments were also performed with the artificial rock-like samples to verify the validity of the EDEM. Simulation results indicated that the EDEM model with the tensile-shear failure criterion has strong capabilities for modeling the growth of pre-existing cracks, and model results have strong agreement with the failure and mechanical properties of experimental samples. The EDEM model with the Griffith failure criterion can only simulate the splitting failure of samples due to tensile stresses and is incapable of providing a comprehensive interpretation for the overall failure of rock masses. Research results demonstrated that sample failure primarily resulted from the growth of single cracks (in the form of tensile wing cracks and shear secondary cracks) and the coalescence of two cracks due to the growth of wing cracks in the rock bridge zone. Additionally, the inclination angle of the pre-existing crack clearly influences the final failure pattern of the samples. © 2012 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.