TY - JOUR
T1 - DEM-based study on the mechanical behaviors of sand-rubber mixture in critical state
AU - Zhang, Jun Qi
AU - Wang, Xiang
AU - Yin, Zhen Yu
N1 - Funding Information:
This research is financially supported by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University Strategic Importance Fund (ZE2T) and Project of Research Institute of Land and Space (CD78), and the Research Grants Council (RGC) of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG) of China (Grant No.: R5037-18F), and the Education Department of Hunan Province (Grant No.: 21B0221).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2023/3/17
Y1 - 2023/3/17
N2 - This paper presents a numerical method to investigate the critical-state behaviors of the soft-rigid mixture via DEM simulation. First, according to a series of laboratory tests of sand-rubber mixtures, a systematic calibration framework is proposed to acquire the numerical parameters. Then, cubic compression tests are conducted with different rubber contents and confining pressures. The evolution of micro-scale properties, including the internal structure, stress network, and fabric anisotropy, is investigated to reveal the influences of rubber content and confining pressure on the micromechanical behaviors of sand-rubber mixtures. Through the investigation of the macroscopic responses, a unified hypoplasticity constitutive model is established and the relationships between the critical state parameters and rubber content are explored. The results show that the critical state shear strength of sand-rubber mixtures decreases with increasing rubber content and does not correlate with confining pressure. Additionally, the influence of rubber content on shear behaviors of SRMs is highly dependent on confining pressure, e.g., SRMs are more likely to exhibit soft-like behaviors under higher confining pressure. This study lays a foundation for the engineering design of geotechnical structures with an appropriate filling of the sand-rubber mixture. Moreover, this study also paves a viable way for a comprehensive investigation of other soft-rigid mixtures in the critical state.
AB - This paper presents a numerical method to investigate the critical-state behaviors of the soft-rigid mixture via DEM simulation. First, according to a series of laboratory tests of sand-rubber mixtures, a systematic calibration framework is proposed to acquire the numerical parameters. Then, cubic compression tests are conducted with different rubber contents and confining pressures. The evolution of micro-scale properties, including the internal structure, stress network, and fabric anisotropy, is investigated to reveal the influences of rubber content and confining pressure on the micromechanical behaviors of sand-rubber mixtures. Through the investigation of the macroscopic responses, a unified hypoplasticity constitutive model is established and the relationships between the critical state parameters and rubber content are explored. The results show that the critical state shear strength of sand-rubber mixtures decreases with increasing rubber content and does not correlate with confining pressure. Additionally, the influence of rubber content on shear behaviors of SRMs is highly dependent on confining pressure, e.g., SRMs are more likely to exhibit soft-like behaviors under higher confining pressure. This study lays a foundation for the engineering design of geotechnical structures with an appropriate filling of the sand-rubber mixture. Moreover, this study also paves a viable way for a comprehensive investigation of other soft-rigid mixtures in the critical state.
KW - Critical state
KW - Discrete element method
KW - Hypoplasticity constitutive model
KW - Shear behaviors
KW - Soft-rigid mixtures
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85147908268&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2023.130603
DO - 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2023.130603
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85147908268
SN - 0950-0618
VL - 370
JO - Construction and Building Materials
JF - Construction and Building Materials
M1 - 130603
ER -