Numerical prediction of blast‐induced stress wave from large‐scale underground explosion

This paper presents a numerical model for predicting the dynamic response of rock mass subjected to large‐scale underground explosion. The model is calibrated against data obtained from large‐scale field tests. The Hugoniot equation of state for rock mass is adopted to calculate the pressure as a function of mass density. A piecewise linear Drucker–Prager strength criterion including the strain rate effect is employed to model the rock mass behaviour subjected to blast loading. A double scalar damage model accounting for both the compression and tension damage is introduced to simulate the damage zone around the charge chamber caused by blast loading. The model is incorporated into Autodyn3D through its user subroutines. The numerical model is then used to predict the dynamic response of rock mass, in terms of the peak particle velocity (PPV) and peak particle acceleration (PPA) attenuation laws, the damage zone, the particle velocity time histories and their frequency contents for large‐scale underground explosion tests. The computed results are found in good agreement with the field measured data; hence, the proposed model is proven to be adequate for simulating the dynamic response of rock mass subjected to large‐scale underground explosion. Extended numerical analyses indicate that, apart from the charge loading density, the stress wave intensity is also affected, but to a lesser extent, by the charge weight and the charge chamber geometry for large‐scale underground explosions. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Application of stress release models to historical earthquakes from North China

Univariate and multivariate stress release models are fitted to historical earthquake data from North China. It is shown that a better fit is obtained by treating separately the Eastern part of the region, including the North China Plain and Bohai Sea, and the Western part of the region, including the Ordos Plateau and its Eastern boundary. Further improvement is obtained by fitting the large events (M7.6) and smaller events in the Western region by different stress release models. The comparisons are made by computing the likelihoods of the fitted models and discounting the number of parameters used by Akaike's AIC criterion. The models are used to develop long-term risk scenarios for the East and West regions.     

Focal mechanism inversion in the Giudicarie–Lessini seismotectonic region (Southern Alps, Italy): Insights on tectonic stress and strain

A set of 41 focal mechanisms (1989–2006) from P-wave first polarities is computed from relocated seismic events in the Giudicarie–Lessini region (Southern Alps). Estimated hypocentral depths vary from 3.1 to 20.8 km, for duration magnitudes (M_D) in the range 2.7–5.1. Stress and strain inversions are performed for two seismotectonic zones, namely G (Giudicarie) and L (Lessini). This subdivision is supported by geological evidence, seismicity distribution, and focal mechanism types. The available number of data (16 in G, 22 in L) does not make possible any further subdivisions. Seismotectonic zones G and L are undergoing different kinematic regimes: thrust with strike-slip component in G, and strike-slip in L. Principal stress and strain axes in each sub-region show similar orientations. The direction of maximum horizontal compressive stress is roughly perpendicular to the thrust fronts along the Giudicarie Belt in zone G, and compatible with right-lateral strike-slip reactivation of the faults belonging to the Schio-Vicenza system in zone L. On the whole, kinematic regimes and horizontal stress orientations show a good fit with other stress data from focal mechanisms and breakouts and with geodetic strain rate axes.     

A new method of estimating the ratio between in situ rock stresses and tectonics based on empirical and probabilistic analyses

This paper describes a new procedure for assessing the ratio between in situ stresses in rock masses by means of K (K = σ_H / σ_v, being σ_H and σ_v principal stress) and tectonics for purposes of engineering geology and rock mechanics. The method combines the use of the logic decision tree and the empirical relationship between the Tectonic Stress Index, TSI, and a series of K in situ values obtained from an extensive database. The decision tree considers geological and geophysical factors affecting stress magnitudes both on the regional and local scale. The TSI index is defined by geological and geomechanical parameters. The method proposed provides an assessment of the magnitude of horizontal stresses of tectonic origin. Results for several regions of Europe are presented and the possible applications of the procedure are discussed.     

引水工程秦巴段隧洞地应力模拟及工程地质问题

利用Ansys有限元软件对三峡引水工程秦巴段线路不同深度、不同截面形态隧洞围岩的应力重分布情况进行模拟计算,得到圆形隧洞、城门形隧洞和马蹄形隧洞围岩的应力数值和等值线图.利用库仑一纳维尔强度准则,对花岗岩区及灰岩区隧洞围岩的剪切破坏进行分析;利用三种岩爆应力判别指标,对岩爆进行初步预测;进而对不同深度、不同截面形态的隧洞围岩的稳定性进行分析;最后对引水工程隧洞设计中截面形态的选择给出了初步建议.     

岩石破坏前后曲线分类及脆-延转换围压研究——蚀变岩常规三轴压缩试验Ⅰ

蚀变岩是工程中少见的软弱岩类,在西南某重大水电工程中,蚀变岩处于工程的重要部位,为保证工程的长期稳定性,对蚀变岩力学特性进行了深入全面的试验研究.通过对孔隙度不同的饱水蚀变岩进行系统的常规三轴压缩试验和总结分析,提出了蚀变岩三轴压缩下破坏前应力.应变曲线可分为3大类,破坏后应力-应变曲线亦可分为3大类的形态模式.并得出结论:蚀变岩的破坏类型受围压与孔隙度的共同影响,在给定的12 MPa围压下蚀变岩以脆性破坏为主,只有孔隙度大于16%且围压大于4 MPa时才有可能进入脆-延转换状态,且脆-延转换围压随孔隙度增加而降低,临界状态应力比随孔隙度增大而增加.     

Effect of Cyclic Loading Frequency on Undrained Behaviors of Undisturbed Marine Clay

Based on a series of cyclic triaxial tests, the effect of cyclic frequency on the undrained behaviors of undisturbed marine clay is investigated. For a given dynamic stress ratio, the accumulated pore water pressure and dynamic strain increase with the number of cycles. There exists a threshold value for beth the accumulated pore water pressure and dynamic strain, below which the effect of cyclic frequency is very small, but above which the accumulated pore water pressure and dynamic strain increase intensely with the decrease of cyclic frequency for a given number of cycles. The dynamic strength increases with the increase of cyclic frequency, whereas the effect of cyclic frequency on it gradually diminishes to zero when the number of cycles is large enough, and the dynamic strengths at different frequencies tend to the same limiting minimum dynamic strength. The test results demonstrate that the reasons for the frequency effect on the undrained soil behaviors are beth the creep effect induced by the loading rate and the decrease of sample effective confining pressure caused by the accumulated pore water pressure.     

Predictability of Interannual Variability in the Kuroshio Transport South of Japan Based on Wind Stress Data over the North Pacific

It is expected that a roughly two-year forecast of the Kuroshio transport variation can be made from a past record of wind stress data over the ocean, since it takes nearly ten years for the first-mode baroclinic Rossby wave to traverse the entire basin in the midlatitude North Pacific (∼30°N). We therefore investigated the predictability using an ocean general circulation model driven by the wind stress data from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction/National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) reanalysis. Referring to a hindcast experiment as the control run, we carried out fifteen forecast experiments, the initial conditions of which are taken from the hindcast experiment at intervals of two years during the period from the end of 1969 to the end of 1997. Each of the forecast experiments is driven only by wind stress in the year preceding each experiment. The forecasted Kuroshio transport anomaly south of Japan agrees better with the hindcasted one during the first two years of the forecast in most cases. In some cases, however, significant disagreements occur, most of which are likely due to larger unpredictable variations caused by wind stress anomalies near Japan. At the end of forecast year 2, the anomaly correlation coefficient is about 0.7, and rms of the forecast error is smaller than rms of the hindcasted anomaly. These results indicate that the prediction of the interannual variability in the Kuroshio transport could be made two years in advance at a statistically significant level. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.