Numerical simulation of fracture flow with a mixed-hybrid FEM stochastic discrete fracture network model

We introduce a discrete fracture network model of stationary Darcy flow in fractured rocks. We approximate the fractures by a network of planar circle disks, which is generated on the basis of statistical data obtained from field measurements. We then discretize this network into a mesh consisting of triangular elements placed in three-dimensional space. We use geometrical approximations in fracture planes, which allow for a significant simplification of the final triangular meshes. We consider two-dimensional Darcy flow in each fracture. In order to accurately simulate the channeling effect, we assign to each triangle an aperture defining its hydraulic permeability. For the discretization we use the lowest order Raviart-Thomas mixed finite element method. This method gives quite an accurate velocity field, which is computed directly and which satisfies the mass balance on each triangular element. We demonstrate the use of this method on a model problem with a known analytical solution and describe the generation and triangulation of the fracture network and the computation of fracture flow for a particular real situation.     

考虑简化胶结模型的深海能源土宏观力学性质离散元数值模拟分析

根据蒋明镜等所提出天然结构性砂土微观胶结模型[1–2]及微观胶结试验结果[3–5],将该模型引入离散元商业软件PFC2D,进行能源土双轴试验离散元数值模拟分析,并同Masui等[6]能源土三轴试验结果进行对比分析,结果表明,蒋明镜等所提出胶结模型能够较好的模拟水合物的微观胶结力学行为,水合物胶结的存在对能源土强度具有一定的贡献。     

Modeling of fluid–solid interaction in granular media with coupled lattice Boltzmann/discrete element methods: application to piping erosion

In this article, we present a numerical method to deal with fluid–solid interactions and simulate particle–fluid systems as encountered in soils. This method is based on a coupling between two methods, now widely used in mechanics of granular media and fluid dynamics respectively: the discrete element (DE) method and the lattice Boltzmann (LB) method. The DE method is employed to model interactions between particles, whereas the LB method is used to describe an interstitial Newtonian fluid flow. The coupling presented here is a full one in the sense that particle motions act on fluid flow and reciprocally. This article presents in details each of the two methods and the principle of the coupling scheme. Determination of hydrodynamic forces and torques is also detailed, and the treatment of boundaries is explained. The coupled method is finally illustrated on a simple example of piping erosion, which puts in evidence that the combined LB–DE scheme constitutes a promising tool to study coupled problems in geomechanics. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Seepage simulation using pipe network flow model in a discrete element system

The pipe network flow model can simulate the seepage process with DEM conveniently because of its simple algorithm. However, whether it can recover the correct seepage process has not been verified. In this paper, the equation to update the fluid pressure is rebuilt according to the flow conservation. Through the steady seepage simulation, this algorithm is verified to be able to recover Darcy’s law, and the equation to calibrate the aperture according to macro permeability is derived. Furthermore, the modified algorithm is used to simulate the unsteady seepage process, and the results show good agreement with the analytical solutions.     

A coupled 3‐dimensional bonded discrete element and lattice Boltzmann method for fluid‐solid coupling in cohesive geomaterials

This paper presents a 3D bonded discrete element and lattice Boltzmann method for resolving the fluid‐solid interaction involving complicated fluid‐particle coupling in geomaterials. In the coupled technique, the solid material is treated as an assembly of bonded and/or granular particles. A bond model accounting for strain softening in normal contact is incorporated into the discrete element method to simulate the mechanical behaviour of geomaterials, whilst the fluid flow is solved by the lattice Boltzmann method based on kinetic theory and statistical mechanics. To provide a bridge between theory and application, a 3D algorithm of immersed moving boundary scheme was proposed for resolving fluid‐particle interaction. To demonstrate the applicability and accuracy of this coupled method, a benchmark called quicksand, in which particles become fluidised under the driving of upward fluid flow, is first carried out. The critical hydraulic gradient obtained from the numerical results matches the theoretical value. Then, numerical investigation of the performance of granular filters generated according to the well‐acknowledged design criteria is given. It is found that the proposed 3D technique is promising, and the instantaneous migration of the protected soils can be readily observed. Numerical results prove that the filters which comply with the design criteria can effectively alleviate or eliminate the appearance of particle erosion in dams.     

椭圆形颗粒堆积体模拟颗粒材料力学性能的离散元数值方法

针对离散元中圆形颗粒模拟出的内摩擦角小于真实砂土内摩擦角的缺陷,将已有NS2D离散元程序中的圆形颗粒参量改进为椭圆形颗粒参量,形成改进的NS2D程序。介绍了改进后NS2D程序的基本力学模型,详细推导了程序中椭圆颗粒间以及椭圆颗粒与墙之间接触点的力-位移关系。利用改进后的离散元程序分别模拟了恒定围压下长短轴比例分别为1.1:1、1.4:1,孔隙比均为0.19的椭圆颗粒堆积体的双轴试验,所得的内摩擦角在真实砂土的内摩擦角范围之内,且其应力特征与已有成果吻合良好,证明了改进后的NS2D离散元程序能够模拟分析真实砂土的力学性能     

碎石土隧道自稳性的三维离散元分析

随着国家对基础设施建设投资力度的不断加大,一些需要穿越碎石土体的隧道不断涌现。针对铁路、公路建设中遇到的碎石土隧道的自稳问题,利用改进后的三维离散元模型及编制的计算软件,对碎石土隧道的自稳性进行了模拟分析,探讨了粒径与隧道自稳性之间的关系,研究了粒径分别为0.1,0.2,0.35,0.5,1,2 m等碎石土隧道能够自稳时的最大跨度,并模拟分析了碎石土隧道塌落量与跨度之间的关系。使用的方法和得出的结论对类似工程有一定的参考意义。     

简化接触模型的月壤离散元数值分析

根据月壤其颗粒级配可归类于粉质砂土。针对真实月壤所处的环境（无水、低重力场、低气压等）,将Perko等2001年提出的月壤颗粒间的范德华力植入离散元分析软件PFC2D中,模拟了刚性边界下加入该模型与未加该模型试样的双轴压缩试验,研究了颗粒间范德华力对试样的宏观力学特性与微观颗粒接触的影响。结果表明,颗粒间的范德华力对试样的抗剪强度、体应变以及颗粒平均配位数都有显著的影响     

Analysis of mechanical behaviour and internal stability of granular materials using discrete element method

Granular materials like sand are widely used in civil engineering. They are composed of different sizes of grains, which generate a complex behaviour, difficult to assess experimentally. Internal instability of a granular material is its inability to prevent the loss of its fine particles under flow effect. It is geometrically possible if the fine particles can migrate through the pores of the coarse soil matrix and results in a change in its mechanical properties. This paper uses the three‐dimensional Particle Flow Code (PFC3D/DEM) to study the stability/instability of granular materials and their mechanical behaviour after suffusion. Stability properties of widely graded materials are analysed by simulating the transport of smaller particles through the constrictions formed by the coarse particles under the effect of a downward flow with uniform pressure gradient. A sample made by an initially stable material according to the Kenney & Lau geometrical criterion was divided into five equal layers. The classification of these layers by this criterion before and after the test shows that even stable granular materials can lose fine particles and present local instability. The failure criterion of eroded samples, in which erosion is simulated by progressive removal of fine particles, evolves in an unexpected way. Internal friction angle increases with the initial porosity, the rate of lost fine particles and the average diameter D₅₀. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the implicit immersed boundary method in coupled discrete element and lattice Boltzmann method

The coupled discrete element method and lattice Boltzmann method (DEMLBM) has increasingly drawn attention of researchers in geomechanics due to its mesoscopic nature since 2000. Immersed boundary method (IBM) and immersed moving boundary (IMB) are two popular schemes for coupling fluid particle in DEMLBM. This work aims at coupling DEM and LBM using the latest IBM algorithm and investigating its accuracy, computational efficiency, and applicability. Two benchmark tests, interstitial fluid flow in an ideal packing and single particle sedimentation in viscous fluid, are carried out to demonstrate the accuracy of IBM through semi-empirical Ergun equation, finite element method (FEM), and IMB. Then, simulations of particle migration with relatively large velocity in Poiseuille flow are utilized to address limitations of IBM in DEMLBM modeling. In addition, advantages and deficiencies of IBM are discussed and compared with IMB. It is found that the accuracy of IBM can be only guaranteed when sufficient boundary points are used and it is not suitable for geomechanical problems involving large fluid or particle velocity.     

Numerical simulation of liquefaction in porous media using nonlinear fluid flow law

It is well known that for a sufficiently high seepage velocity, the governing flow law of porous media is nonlinear (J. Computers & Fluids 2010; 39 : 2069–2077). However, this fact has not been considered in the studies of soil‐pore fluid interaction and in conventional soil mechanics. In the present paper, a fully explicit dynamic finite element method is developed for nonlinear Darcy law. The governing equations are expressed for saturated porous media based on the extension of the Biot (J. Appl. Phys. 1941; 12 : 155–164) formulation. The elastoplastic behavior of soil under earthquake loading is simulated using a generalized plasticity theory that is composed of a yield surface along with non‐associated flow rule. Numerical simulations of porous media subjected to horizontal and vertical components of ground motion excitations with different permeability coefficients are carried out; while computed maximum pore water pressure is specially taken into consideration to make the difference between Darcy and non‐Darcy flow regimes tangible. Finally, the effect of non‐Darcy flow on the evaluated liquefaction potential of sand in comparison to conventional Darcy law is examined. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantitative prediction of discrete element models on complex loading paths

The ability of discrete element models to describe quantitatively (and not only qualitatively) the constitutive behaviour of a dense sand is assessed in this paper. Two kinds of 3D discrete models are considered. Both consider spheres as elementary particles. Nevertheless, the first model implements a contact law with rolling resistance whereas the second takes into account clumps made of two spheres. The discrete models are calibrated and validated from mechanical tests performed on a dense Hostun sand with a true triaxial apparatus. The calibration is carried out from axisymmetric drained compression tests, while the validation is discussed from monotonic and cyclic stress proportional loading paths and from a circular stress path in the deviatoric stress plane. The quality of the predictions of the discrete models are evaluated by comparison with the predictions given with advanced phenomenological constitutive relations, mainly an incrementally non-linear relation. Predictions given by the discrete models are remarkable, particularly when it is put in perspective with respect to the very few number of mechanical tests required for their calibration. However, these results and conclusions were reached in enabling conditions, and some limitations of such discrete models should be kept in mind.     

A hybrid calibration approach to Hertz-type contact parameters for discrete element models

This study aims at providing a hybrid calibration framework to estimate Hertz-type contact parameters (particle-scale shear modulus and Poisson ratio) for both two-dimensional and three-dimensional discrete element modelling (DEM). On the basis of statistically isotropic granular packings, a set of analytical formulae between macroscopic material parameters (Young modulus and Poisson ratio) and particle-scale Hertz-type contact parameters for granular systems are derived under small-strain isotropic stress conditions. However, the derived analytical solutions are only estimated values for general models. By viewing each DEM modelling as an implicit mathematical function taking the particle-level parameters as independent variables and employing the derived analytical solutions as the initial input parameters, an automatic iterative scheme is proposed to obtain the calibrated parameters with higher accuracies. Considering highly nonlinear features and discontinuities of the macro-micro relationship in Hertz-based discrete element models, the adaptive moment estimation algorithm is adopted in this study because of its capacity of dealing with noise gradients of cost functions. The proposed method is validated with several numerical cases including randomly distributed monodisperse and polydisperse packings. Noticeable improvements in terms of calibration efficiency and accuracy have been made.     

A finite element method for modeling coupled flow and deformation in porous fractured media

Modeling the flow in highly fractured porous media by finite element method (FEM) has met two difficulties: mesh generation for fractured domains and a rigorous formulation of the flow problem accounting for fracture/matrix, fracture/fracture, and fracture/boundary fluid mass exchanges. Based on the recent theoretical progress for mass balance conditions in multifractured porous bodies, the governing equations for coupled flow and deformation in these bodies are first established in this paper. A weak formulation for this problem is then established allowing to build a FEM. Taking benefit from recent development of mesh‐generating tools for fractured media, this weak formulation has been implemented in a numerical code and applied to some typical problems of hydromechanical coupling in fractured porous media. It is shown that in this way, the FEM that has proved its efficiency to model hydromechanical phenomena in porous media is extended with all its performances (calculation time, couplings, and nonlinearities) to fractured porous media. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical simulation of desiccation cracking in a thin clay layer using 3D discrete element modeling

Desiccation cracking of clay soil is of critical importance in many applications, such as industrial waste containment, hydraulic barriers, road embankments, and agricultural operations. The factors that influence cracking are known qualitatively, but it is not clear how to predict the initiation and propagation of cracks. This study presents a discrete element approach to modeling desiccation cracking in thin clay layers, considering material property changes. First, an aggregate shrinkage model based on the aggregate structure of clay was proposed, and the drying shrinkage of clay soil was modeled by imposing drying shrinkage kinetics for each aggregate at the micro-scale. Second, the clay soil was represented by an assembly of aggregates linked by bonds, and desiccation cracking of the clay layer was modeled using a three-dimensional discrete element code (PFC3D), with the aid of the embedded programming language FISH. When the clay layer is sufficiently thin, the water content gradient along the section can be neglected; thus, the shrinkage kinetics are the same for all of the grains of clay. In the model based on the discrete element method (DEM), the bond strength and contact stiffness changed during drying. Their changes were determined by matching the simulation results with the experimental data. Third, the DEM approach was validated by reproducing experimental desiccation tests performed on a thin clay layer in a disk shape. The geometric parameters of surface cracks were quantified using image analysis techniques and were compared with experimental observations. Fourth, some factors of influence, such as the sample thickness, the properties of the soil–base interface, micro-mechanical parameters, and shrinkage parameters, were investigated using the DEM model. The results obtained from the DEM analyses were compared with the results of prior research in this field of study. The approach used in this study is very promising for simulating desiccation cracking in thin clay soil because the model captures the initiation and propagation mechanism of desiccation cracks. Although this study was carried out on surface cracking in a thin clay layer, the extension of this methodology is of potential benefit not only for predicting three-dimensional desiccation cracking in real clay liners but also for modeling cracking in other materials with properties that vary with water content or temperature, such as concrete and rock.     

基于离散元模拟的二元颗粒柱坍塌特性研究

常见的地质灾害如滑坡、泥石流、岩崩等通常都涉及不同形状的颗粒物质运动,这些形状不同的颗粒又多具有不同的尺寸和含量。基于典型的颗粒柱坍塌试验,首先根据试验方法确定了离散元模拟所需的各项参数,然后采用随机多面体方法生成了可控制长细比的大颗粒,利用离散元法就不同大颗粒含量下形态变化对二元颗粒柱坍塌特性的影响开展研究,研究结果表明:(1)利用离散元法可以较好地重现室内试验中小球和多面体组成的二元颗粒系统的颗粒柱坍塌过程;(2)在不同长细比的不规则大颗粒和小球组成的二元颗粒柱系统中,当大颗粒含量高于临界含量值20%时,二元颗粒柱坍塌持续的时间随非球形大颗粒长细比的增加而增加;(3)在不同长细比的不规则大颗粒和小球组成的二元颗粒柱中,当大颗粒含量高于临界含量值20%时,在相同百分比的大颗粒含量下,大颗粒长细比的增加会提高大颗粒平均配位数以及降低颗粒的运动能力,大颗粒间形成更强的互锁作用,降低了颗粒柱的整体流动性,使其最终堆积高度更高、最大跑出距离更短以及更小的归一化动能峰值。(4)在不同长细比的不规则大颗粒和小球组成的二元颗粒柱中,小颗粒可以较为明显降低大颗粒间摩擦及互锁作用,增加流动性,降低大骨料形态对坍塌过程的影响。     

A new potential function for the calculation of contact forces in the combined finite–discrete element method

Although the potential contact force proposed by Munjiza overcomes the difficulties inherent in the traditional discrete element methods, the physical meaning of the potential is not clear and the contact force derived from the original potential function is strongly dependent on the mesh configuration. In this study, we redefine a potential function and propose a new contact force calculation method based on a unified standard. Moreover, the new potential function retains all the advantages of the original potential function but has less mesh dependency. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A continuum‐discrete model using Darcy's law: formulation and verification

This paper presents a numerical scheme for fluid‐particle coupled discrete element method (DEM), which is based on poro‐elasticity. The motion of the particles is resolved by means of DEM. While within the proposition of Darcian regime, the fluid is assumed as a continuum phase on a Eulerian mesh, and the continuity equation on the fluid mesh for a compressible fluid is solved using the FEM. Analytical solutions of traditional soil mechanics examples, such as the isotropic compression and one‐dimensional upward seepage flow, were used to validate the proposed algorithm quantitatively. The numerical results showed very good agreement with the analytical solutions, which show the correctness of this algorithm. Sensitivity studies on the effect of some influential factors of the coupling scheme such as pore fluid bulk modulus, volumetric strain calculation, and fluid mesh size were performed to display the accuracy, efficiency, and robustness of the numerical algorithm. It is revealed that the pore fluid bulk modulus is a critical parameter that can affect the accuracy of the results. Because of the iterative coupling scheme of these algorithms, high value of fluid bulk modulus can result in instability and consequently reduction in the maximum possible time‐step. Furthermore, the increase of the fluid mesh size reduces the accuracy of the calculated pore pressure. This study enhances our current understanding of the capacity of fluid‐particle coupled DEM to simulate the mechanical behavior of saturated granular materials. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.