International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63

Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect

International Journal of
Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijrmms

Elasto-plastic analysis of jointed rocks using discrete continuum and

equivalent continuum approaches
Gali Madhavi Latha n, Arunakumari Garaga
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Results from elasto-plastic numerical simulations of jointed rocks using both the equivalent continuum
Received 29 November 2010 and discrete continuum approaches are presented, and are compared with experimental measure-
Received in revised form ments. Initially triaxial compression tests on different types of rocks with wide variation in the uniaxial
24 February 2012
compressive strength are simulated using both the approaches and the results are compared. The
Accepted 25 March 2012
Available online 8 May 2012
applicability and relative merits and limitations of both the approaches for the simulation of jointed
rocks are discussed. It is observed that both the approaches are reasonably good in predicting the real
Keywords: response. However, the equivalent continuum approach has predicted somewhat higher stiffness
Jointed rock mass values at low strains. Considering the modelling effort involved in case of discrete continuum approach,
Numerical simulations
for problems with complex geometry, it is suggested that a proper equivalent continuum model can be
Elasto-plastic analysis
used, without compromising much on the accuracy of the results. Then the numerical analysis of a
Discrete continuum model
Equivalent-continuum model tunnel in Japan is taken up using the continuum approach. The deformations predicted are compared
well against the field measurements and the predictions from discontinuum analysis.
& 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Due to the presence of discontinuities, the mechanical response
of rock mass is often anisotropic. The influence of discontinuities
on the strength and deformation response of rocks has been
studied by many researchers. The residual strength of the dis-
continuities is usually much lower than the peak strength and the
discontinuities exhibit brittle failure behaviour. When a jointed
rock is stressed, because of the difference in the peak strength of
the joints and the material, the stresses get redistributed. There are
asperities of different orders (first order, second order etc.) along
the surface of the rough joints. The steeper asperities are sheared
first and then the load is transferred on to the gentle asperities and
due to the sequential failure of different orders of asperities
becomes progressive. The failure continues to propagate until an
equilibrium state is attained or till complete collapse. Hence the
prediction of mechanical response of jointed rocks becomes much
complicated.
A realistic appraisal of the complexities imposed by disconti-
nuities would often require that rocks be treated as discontinua.
Nevertheless, approximate but acceptable solutions can be
obtained by considering the jointed rocks as continuous masses.
Earlier researchers have adopted several approaches to model the
jointed rock masses, viz. the equivalent continuum approach
[1–3], the joint element approach [4], the discontinuous deforma-
tion analysis [5], the distinct element method [6]. Some research-
ers also tried hybrid methods, e.g., strength reduction approach
[7], numerical manifold method [8], synthetic rock mass approach
[9] and a combination of fracture network models with shear
strength reduction method [10].
With this background, elasto-plastic numerical analysis of
jointed rocks is taken up in this study to compare the efficiency of
both the discrete continuum and equivalent continuum approaches.
Initially the numerical analysis of various rocks in triaxial compres-
sion is taken up and the results from both the discrete continuum
approach and equivalent continuum approaches are compared
against the experimental measurements. In the next stage, a
case study of a tunnel in Japan is taken up. The tunnel is simulated
using equivalent continuum approach and the numerical displace-
ments are compared with the field measurements. The numerical
analyses are carried out using the programme FLAC (Fast Lagrangian
Analysis of Continua) 2D version 5.0. FLAC is an explicit finite
difference programme based on the Lagrangian calculation
scheme and is used extensively for geotechnical engineering appli-
cations [11].
2. Numerical modelling of jointed rocks in triaxial
compression

n
Corresponding author. Tel.: þ91 80 22933123; fax: þ91 80 3600404. Six types of jointed rocks namely, plaster of paris, gypsum
E-mail address: madhavi@civil.iisc.ernet.in (G. Madhavi Latha). plaster, jamrani sandstone, agra sandstone, kota sandstone and

1365-1609/$ - see front matter & 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2012.03.013
 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63 57

granite are selected for the studies on numerical simulation of pressure, Rf is the failure ratio which is defined as the ratio of ultimate
triaxial compression tests. All these samples have aspect ratio deviatoric stress and asymptotic deviatoric stress. The values of
(height to diameter ratio) of 2. Experimental data for these rocks modulus exponent nd, modulus number K and failure ratio Rf are
was collected from Yaji [12] (plaster of paris, kota sandstone and determined by synthesising the triaxial test results on these jointed
granite), Arora [13] (plaster of paris, jamrani sandstone and agra rock samples. The input parameters for the triaxial samples of jointed
sandstone) and Roy [14] (plaster of paris, jamrani sandstone and rocks used in this set of numerical analyses are given in Table 2.
agra sandstone) and Brown and Trollope [15] (gypsum plaster).
Properties of the intact rocks used in the analyses are shown in 2.2. Equivalent continuum modelling (ECM)
Table 1.
Numerical simulations are carried out in two stages. In the first The presence of discontinuities is the primary reason for the
stage uniform confining pressure is applied around the sample. In strength reduction, anisotropy and nonlinear response in jointed
the second stage deviatoric stress is applied in increments using rock masses. Hence the rock masses may be modelled by
the displacement control method in which equal vertical defor- substituting the original discontinuous medium by a continuum,
mations are specified to the grid points on top and bottom whose constitutive law incorporates the effect of the intact
surfaces. Loading was done in several steps with 10 iterations material and that of the discontinuities. This approach is referred
per each step until the specified strain level is reached. as the equivalent continuum/material approach or smeared
approach [19]. In the present set of analyses, the equivalent
2.1. Constitutive model continuum model developed by Ramamurthy [20] is used in
which the jointed rock mass is simulated like a composite mass
In the present study the jointed rocks are represented using with properties derived from the properties of intact rock and the
the nonlinear hyperbolic confining stress dependent elastic-plas- joint factor, which is calculated from the properties of joints. This
tic constitutive model proposed by Duncan and Chang [16]. This is model is incorporated in numerical programme FLAC along with
an in-built model in the numerical code of FLAC. This model is the nonlinear confining stress dependent hyperbolic constitutive
based on the work of Kondner [17] and his co-workers who model proposed by Duncan and Chang [16]. Special FISH functions
showed that the stress–strain curve for a number of geo-materials are written in FLAC to incorporate the user defined continuum
could be approximated reasonably well by a hyperbolic equation equations and constitutive behaviour of jointed rock masses. The
and the work of Janbu [18], who showed that the elastic modulus FISH function takes the properties of intact rock and joints as
of the geo-materials increase nonlinearly with the confining input and calculates the equivalent rock mass properties. The
pressure. Details of this model are well documented in several input parameters are the elastic modulus of intact rock, join
published papers and are not discussed in this thesis. inclination and joint frequency, which is the number of joints per
Based on the above model, the material behaviour of jointed meter in the major principal stress direction. Then the FISH
rocks is modelled using the following nonlinear relationship: [16]: function calculates the joint factor (Jf) as
 2  nd Jn
Rf ð1sin fÞðs1 s3 Þ s3 Jf ¼ ð2Þ
Et ¼ 1 KP a ð1Þ nr
2ccos f þ 2s3 sin f Pa
where Et is the initial tangent modulus of the intact rock, s1 and s3 where Jn is number of joints per meter in the direction of the
major principal stress, n is the inclination parameter depending
are the major and minor principal stresses, ea is axial strain, K is the
modulus number, nd is modulus exponent and Pa is atmospheric on the inclination of the joint b with respect to major principal
stress direction, r is the roughness or joint strength parameter
depending on the joint condition. The values of n for various
Table 1 inclinations and the joint strength parameter r for various uni-
Properties of intact rocks.
axial compressive strengths of intact rock as given in [20]. The
Type of rock Uniaxial Cohesion Friction Elastic Modulus FISH function then calculates the value of modulus ratio Er for the
compressive c (MPa) angle f (at confining rock mass, which is the ratio of elastic modulus of the jointed rock
strength sci (degrees) pressure 0– (Ej) to the elastic modulus of the intact rock (Ei) at zero confining
(MPa) 10 MPa)
pressure given the value of joint factor Jf as follows.
Ei (MPa)
The equation for obtaining the elastic modulus of jointed rock
Plaster of paris 11.32 2.87 37 1,000–5,500 for any confining pressure s3 in triaxial compression is given by
Gypsum plaster 21 0 35 4,000–30,000 Ramamurthy [20] from the analysis of experimental data of Yaji
Jamrani 55.07 8.52 54 7,360–14,780 [12], Arora [13], Roy [14], Brown and Trollope [15], and Einstein
sandstone
and Hirschfield [21] as
Kota sandstone 62.3 14 44 5,100–7,750
Agra sandstone 110 19 51 20,000–26,000 Ej ðs3 ¼ 0Þ
Granite 123 25.5 46.5 10,800–12,800 Ej ¼ ð3Þ
1exp½0:1ðscj =s3 Þ

Table 2
Parameters used for the analyses of jointed rocks in triaxial compression.

Property Plaster of paris Gypsum plaster Jamrani sandstone Kota sandstone Agra sandstone Granite

Modulus number (K) 9000 9000 97,500 35,279 101,964 107,000

Modulus exponent (nd) 0.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.14 0.04
Confining pressure (s3) (MPa) 2, 5 1.4, 3.4, 6.9 and 13.8 2.5, 5 and 10 1, 2.5, 5 2.5, 5 1, 2.5, 5
Failure ratio (Rf) 0.5 0.9 0.3 0.1 0 0.1 0.3 0.1
Number of joints in sample 1, 2, 3 20 1 1 1 2 3 1
Joint frequency (Jn) 13,26, 39 263 13 13 13 26 39 13
Joint inclination (b1) 301, 501 Block jointed 601/301 301, 451, 601 451, 601 301, 501, 701 501, 701 501, 701 601, 751, 901
58 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63
In the above equation, Ej (s3 ¼ 0) is the elastic modulus of the
jointed rock in uniaxial compression, which can be calculated
using the following equation:
Ej ðs3 ¼ 0Þ ¼ expð1:15  102 J f ÞEi ðs3 ¼ 0Þ
where Ei (s3 ¼0) is the elastic modulus of the intact rock in
uniaxial compression. In Eq. (3), ‘scj’ is the uniaxial compressive
strength of jointed rock given as
sc j ¼ expð0:008Jf Þci
where sci is the uniaxial compressive strength of intact rock.
Further, Ramamurthy [22], expressed the strength and modulus
in terms of effective principal stresses. The general form of
the failure criterion proposed by Ramamurthy [22] in terms of
effective principal stresses is
 aj
s
s01 ¼ s03 þ s03 Bj cj0 ð6Þ
s3
The values of bj and aj can be obtained from the following
empirical relationships:
 
bi aj
¼ 0:13exp 2:037 ð7Þ
bj ai
 0:5
aj scj
¼ ð8Þ
ai sci
In the above equation, ai is the slope of the plot between
(s1–s3)/s3 and (sc/s3). For most intact rocks its mean value is
0.8 and bi is a material constant which is equal to (s1–s3)/s3 when
(sc/s3)¼1. The values of bi vary from 1.8 to 3.0 for argillaceous,
arenaceous, chemical and igneous rocks. The values of ai and bi can
be estimated by conducting a minimum of two triaxial tests at
confining pressures greater than 5% of sci for the rock.
2.3. Discrete continuum modelling (DCM)
Due to the obvious presence of the discontinuities in rock
masses, it is recommended that enough care should be taken of
these discontinuities while modelling the behaviour of jointed
rock masses. The dimensions of these discontinuities (joints,
faults and bedding planes) may range from fraction of a milli-
metre to several meters. Discrete continuum approach is a novel
approach where in the joints are explicitly put in the continuum
medium. In this method the inclination of the joint sets and their
frequency can be explicitly incorporated. Apart from that one can
have clear view of the failure of the rock mass along the most
critical joint set. This explicit modelling of the joints can be
carried out using the interface elements in FLAC.
FLAC provides interfaces that are characterized by Coulomb
sliding and/or tensile separation. Interfaces have the properties of
friction, cohesion, dilation, normal stiffness, shear stiffness and
tensile strength. Although there is no restriction on the number of
interfaces or the complexity of their intersections, it is generally
not sensible to model more than a few simple interfaces with
FLAC because it is ill at ease to specify complicated interface
geometry. An interface is represented as normal and shear
stiffness between two planes which are in contact with one
another. FLAC uses contact logic for either side of the interface.
Discrete continuum modelling of the four types of jointed rocks
namely kota sandstone, agra sandstone, plaster of paris and granite is
carried out in FLAC with interface elements to represent the joints
explicitly. Nonlinear confining stress dependent hyperbolic model
proposed in [16] is used to represent the constitutive behaviour of
these rocks. The discrete continuum modelling of jointed rocks in
triaxial compression is carried out in FLAC using glued type interface
elements to represent the normal and shear stiffness (Kn and Ks,
respectively) of the joint. Generally values of Kn and Ks are the
function of normal and shear stiffness of the neighbouring elements
[23]. The normal (Kn) and shear (Ks) stiffness of the discontinuities
were defined according to the following equations [24,25]
ð4Þ
Ei Ej Gi Gj
Kn ¼ , Ks ¼ ð9Þ
sðEi Ej Þ sðGi Gj Þ
where Ei, Gi and Ej, Gi are the elastic and shear moduli for intact rock
and rock mass, respectively, and s is the mean joint spacing used in
ð5Þ
the model. The elastic moduli of various intact rocks at tested
confining pressures are given in Table 1. The elastic moduli of the
jointed rock Ej are calculated using Eqs. (3) and (4) from the elastic
modulus of the intact rock and the joint factor at any specific
confining pressure. Spacing of joints is calculated based on the joint
frequency computed in Table 1. All the samples tested were of 38 mm
diameter and 76 mm height and hence a single joint will represent a
joint spacing of 76 mm and double joint represents a spacing of
38 mm and so on. The shear moduli values for the intact and jointed
rocks are calculated using the elastic moduli and Poisson’s ratio.
Table 3 shows the values of the Kn and Ks used in the numerical
analysis for different jointed rocks. Fig. 1 shows the typical grids used
in the discrete continuum modelling of jointed rock samples.
2.4. Comparison of results from equivalent continuum and discrete
continuum modelling
In this section, the efficiency of both equivalent continuum and
discrete continuum approaches in modelling the jointed rocks in
triaxial compression is compared. The stress–strain response of
various jointed rocks simulated in triaxial compression tests in
numerical studies are compared for both the modelling approaches
along with the experimental stress–strain response.
2.4.1. Effect of confining pressure
Initially the efficiency of both the equivalent continuum and
discrete continuum approaches in capturing the effect of confin-
ing pressure on the stress–strain response of all the four types of
rocks is examined. Fig. 2 presents the results from both the
numerical modelling approaches, for the case of kota sandstone
with single joint inclined at 451 in the triaxial sample tested at
confining pressures of 1, 2.5 and 5 MPa. The figure also presents
the comparison of these approaches with the measured stress–
strain response from the laboratory tests as reported in [12]. It
can be seen from the figure that both the approaches are giving
results in good agreement with experimental values at all the
confining pressures tested. It can also be observed from the
experimental results that the stress–strain curve gets steeper as
the confining pressure is increased. This phenomenon is well
captured by both the numerical approaches i.e., equivalent con-
tinuum approach and discrete continuum approach.
Fig. 3 shows the stress–strain response predicted by both
the approaches for the case of agra sandstone with single
joint inclined at 301 and the results are compared against the
experimental measurements. It can be observed from the figure
that equivalent continuum approach is predicting slightly flatter
Table 3
Values of Kn and Ks used in the numerical analyses.
Rock type Normal stiffness Shear stiffness
Kn (MPa/m) Ks (MPa/m)
Kota sandstone 733 75
Agra sandstone 2,450 70
Granite 20,000 200
Plaster of paris 260 30
 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63 59

30° 45° 50° 60° 70° 90°

50° 50° 50° 70° 70° 70°

Fig. 1. Typical numerical grids used for modelling jointed rocks in DCM.

30 Kota Sandstone 80 Agra Sandstone

σ3=5 MPa
70
45° 30° σ3=5 MPa
25
Deveatoric Stress (MPa)

σ3=2.5 MPa 60
Deveatoric Stress (MPa)

50
20
σ3=2.5 MPa
40
15 30
σ3=1MPa
20 ECM
10
10 DCM
ECM Experimental
5 DCM 0
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02
Experimental
Axial Strain
0
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02 0.025 0.03 0.035 Fig. 3. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for single jointed agra sandstone
with b ¼301 at different confining pressures.
Axial Strain

Fig. 2. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for single jointed kota sandstone
with b ¼ 451 at different confining pressures.
stress–strain response than the experimental predictions whereas
the discrete continuum approach is giving very good results at all
strain levels and the values are very close to experimental values
for both the confining pressures tested. Fig. 4 shows the displace-
ment vectors for rock samples modelled using DCM. It can be
observed from the figure that the vectors of elastic deformations
on opposite sides of the interface can be clearly visualized in DCM
unlike in case of ECM where the interface is absent.
The stress–strain response for single jointed granite at different
confining pressures predicted by both ECM and DCM approaches
along with the experimental measurements is shown in Fig. 5. As
observed from the figure, both the approaches seem to predict the
stress–strain response of granite reasonably well.
2.4.2. Effect of joint frequency
In the second stage of the analysis the effect of joint frequency
on the overall response of jointed rock and the efficiency of the
ECM and DCM in capturing the same is investigated. For this
purpose numerical simulations on agra sandstone are carried out
with single, double and triple joints inclined at 501. Results
obtained from the numerical simulations are compared against
the experimental values. The comparisons are shown in Fig. 6.
It can be observed from Fig. 6 that for the case of three jointed
sample, which represents a joint frequency (Jn) of 39, both the
approaches are equally good in capturing the stress–stain response.
However for single and double jointed samples, where the joint
frequency (Jn) is 13 and 26, respectively, ECM is giving better results
than the discrete continuum model. At these joint frequencies (Jn)
discrete continuum is predicting slightly stiffer stress–strain response.
60 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63

Agra Sandstone (σ3=2.5 MPa) Kota Sandstone (σ3=1.0 MPa)

β=30° β=50° β=45° β=60°

Fig. 4. Deformed shapes of rock samples captured in DCM.

160
Granite
σ3=5 MPa
140
75°
120 σ3=2.5 MPa
Dveatoric Stress (MPa)

100
σ3=1 MPa

80

60

40
ECM
20 DCM
Experimental
0
0 0.002 0.004 0.006 0.008 0.01 0.012 0.014
Axial Strain

Fig. 5. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for single jointed granite with sandstone with b ¼ 751 at different confining pressures.

160 σ3=5 MPa Agra Sandstone Plaster of Paris σ3=2 MPa

14
50° 50° 50° 50°
140 50° 50° 1-Joint 1-Joint
2-Joints 12 2-Joints
Deveatoric stress (MPa)
Deveatoric Stress (MPa)

120
10
100 3-Joints
8 3-Joints
80
6
60
4
40 ECM ECM
2 DCM
DCM Experimental
20 Experimental
0
0 0 0.002 0.004 0.006 0.008 0.01 0.012
0 0.002 0.004 0.006 0.008 0.01 0.012 0.014 0.016 Axial strain
Axial Strain
Fig. 7. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for plaster of paris with b ¼ 501
Fig. 6. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for single jointed agra sandstone for different joint frequencies.
with b ¼ 501 for different joint frequencies.

the tests were carried out at a confining pressure of 2 MPa. As

Similarly the comparison of stress–strain response predicted by both observed from the figure, equivalent continuum approach is giving
ECM and DEM for plaster of paris sample with single, two and three better predictions for this compared to the discrete continuum
joints is shown in Fig. 7. The joints are inclined at 501 in this case and approach.
 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63 61

2.4.3. Effect of joint inclination
In the third stage of the analysis the effect of joint inclination
angle on the stress–strain response of jointed rocks is studied and
the efficacy of both ECM and DEM in capturing the same is
compared. Numerical simulations are carried out for 301, 501, and
701 in case of agra sandstone and 451 and 601 in case of kota
sandstone. Figs. 8 and 9 show the comparison of results obtained
from numerical analysis against the experimental values.
From Fig. 8, it can be observed that the slope of the stress–
strain curve is getting steeper as the joint inclination angle (b) is
increasing. It can be noted from the figure that both the
approaches are capturing the effect of joint inclination (b) on
the stress–strain response of agra sandstone. The stress–strain
response predicted by both DCM and ECM is in good agreement
with the experimental values at almost all the joint inclination
angles (b). Even for the case of kota sandstone as given in Fig. 9,
both the ECM and DCM are predicting similar response, closely
matching with the experimental measurements.
From this set of analyses, it can be concluded that the
numerical model along with the constitutive relations used is
capable of predicting the stress–strain response of the jointed
rocks very close to the experimental measurements using both
Agra Sandstone
160
β=70°
σ3=5 MPa
140
30°
50° 70°
Deveatoric Stress (MPa)
DCM and ECM approaches. Though ECM has predicted slightly
stiffer response in some cases, the deviation is very much
insignificant. When the modelling efforts are compared for both
the equivalent continuum and discrete continuum approaches,
ECM is very simple, as the difficulties involved in explicitly
incorporating all joints is totally eliminated. Also the input
parameters needed for the analysis are minimal for ECM com-
pared to DCM where we need to calculate the properties of
interfaces also, which sometime may lead to erroneous results.
Hence it can be concluded that the equivalent continuum model-
ling approach as explained in this section can be confidently used
for the easy prediction of the stress–strain response of jointed
rocks, without compromising on the accuracy of results.
3. Case study of Shimizu highway tunnel
Shimizu tunnel no. 3 is located in the city Shimizu and is
constructed as a part of the new Tomei Expressway in Japan.
Geological investigations by Barton [26] showed that the main rock
formation at the site is weathered soft sandstone. Three major
discontinuity sets were recognized in the rock mass under considera-
tion. The first set J1 is formed by bedding plane joints and the second
set J2 consists of cross joints at a random orientation. The third joint
set J3 dips almost vertically. The inclination data for the joint sets is
β=50° presented in Table 4. ‘‘TBM pilot and enlargement method’’ was
considered as the appropriate construction procedure for the tunnel.
In this method, a circular pilot tunnel is created first and when it has

120
progressed to some extent subsequent gradual enlargement of the
100 tunnel takes place in stages of a top heading, a bench and finally an
invert. The entire tunnel was excavated in three stages i.e., pilot
80 tunnel, top-heading and bottom benching. Typical cross section of the
β=30° tunnel is shown in Fig. 10. The tunnel is of 12 m height and 18 m
60 wide and runs through a length of 1.12 km. Depth of overburden was
83 m and the in-situ stresses reported by Vardakos [27] are 2.03 and
40 ECM 1.73 MPa in horizontal and vertical directions, respectively. The intact
rock at the site has uniaxial compressive strength of 60 MPa, Young’s
DCM
20 modulus of 3000 MPa, cohesion of 2 MPa, friction angle of 381 and
Experimental
Poisson’s ratio 0.3.
0
0 0.002 0.004 0.006 0.008 0.01 0.012 0.014 Table 4
Axial Strain Orientation of discontinuities for sandstone at the Shimizu tunnel no. 3 site.

Fig. 8. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for single jointed agra sandstone Joint set Type Dip Dip direction Joint spacing (m) Joint length (m)
for different joint inclinations.
J1 Bedding 28 N50W 0.1–1.0 10.0–50.0
J2 Cross 58 S54E 0.1–1.0 0.25–2
J3 Cross 88 N18W 0.3–3.0 0.25–2
60 Kota Sandstone σ3=2.5 MPa
60°
50
Deveatoric Stresss (MPa)

40 45°

30

20
ECM
10 DCM
Experimental

0
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02 0.025 0.03 0.035
Axial Strain

Fig. 9. Comparision of ECM and DCM approaches for single jointed kota sandstone
for different joint inclinations. Fig. 10. Typical cross section of the Shimizu tunnel no. 3.
62 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63

4. Numerical modelling of the tunnel of the rock above the tunnel. Joint factor (Jf) is calculated for this
case study taking 281 inclination as the most critical joint, i.e., the
Plane strain numerical analysis of the tunnel is carried out orientation corresponds to joint set 1 in Table 4 (bedding plane).
using the equivalent continuum approach in FLAC. The joint factor From the design charts and tables developed by Ramamurthy
approach proposed by Ramamurthy [20], described in previous [20], inclination parameter n for 281 joint is calculated as 0.07 and
section is used for the ECM. The grid used for the analysis is the joint strength parameter r as 0.9. The joint frequency i.e.,
155  90 m in size. About 13,000 zones are created to model the number of joints per metre length of the rock mass is calculated
tunnel. The problem is analyzed for the initial stresses existing in as 7. The joint factor (Jf) for this case study is calculated as 111.
the surrounding rock and the overburden stress due to the weight The numerical simulation of the excavation of the cavern is
carried out in three excavation stages as it was done in the field.
The ‘null’ model available in FISH library is used for this purpose.
Initially the pilot tunnel i.e., the circular portion is excavated and
30
then subsequently the top heading followed by bottom benching
and finally the invert are excavated. The FISH function written for
25 R1, G1 Ramamurthy’s failure criterion is used in the analyses and it is
called at each iterative step in the numerical analysis. The model
20 R2, E1 R3, E2 is solved for equilibrium at each excavation step before proceed-
ing to the next step. Fig. 11 shows the location of extensometers
15 and points where the displacements are measured in field.
R4, E3 C R5, E4
D H
10
5. Analysis of results and discussions
5
The horizontal displacement contours for the tunnel obtained
from the continuum analysis in FLAC are shown in Fig. 12. The
0
-25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 data for measured displacements around the tunnel is available
only for the top heading excavation. Displacements at different
-5 locations obtained from the present numerical analysis are
E1 E2, E3, E4 and G1 data are from extensometer compared with those predicted from discontinuum analysis by
measurements Vardakos [27] using Universal Discrete Element Code (UDEC) and
C, D, H onsite data are from 3D convergence surveying
by total station with the measured values from field. The comparisons are given
R1, R2, R3, R4 and R5 are measuring anchor locations in Table 5.
From Table 5, it is observed that the equivalent continuum model
Fig. 11. Locations of measurement around the cavern. proposed by Ramamurthy [20] is able to predict the displacement

JOB TITLE : Tunnel x-displacement (*10^1)

7.000
LEGEND

4-Oct-07 21:26
step 6504 6.000
4.282E+01 <x< 1.142E+02
5.625E+00 <y< 7.700E+01

X-displacement contours 5.000

-1.00E-02
-7.50E-03
-5.00E-03
-2.50E-03
0.00E+00 4.000
2.50E-03
5.00E-03
7.50E-03
1.00E-02 3.000

Contour interval= 2.50E-03

2.000

1.000

0.500 0.600 0.700 0.800 0.900 1.000 1.100

(*10^2)

Fig. 12. Horizontal displacement contours after complete excavation of the tunnel.
 G. Madhavi Latha, A. Garaga / International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences 53 (2012) 56–63 63

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