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Abstract
The laboratory tests and Particle Flow Code numerical simulation of triaxial compression are conducted to analyze fractal dimensions of fracture surface, strength properties, energy dissipation, damage laws and crack evolution. Under low confining pressure, the fracture surface of the brittle specimen is rough and the angle relative to the maximum principal stress is small. The specimen eventually exhibits local tensile-shear failure mode. With the increase of confining pressure, the strength of the specimen increases and yield platform for the stress–strain curve is more obvious. The main fracture surface becomes increasingly flatter and the fracture angle increases with the increase of confining pressure. The specimen exhibits a shear failure mode macroscopically. With the increase of confining pressure, the trend of transgranular shear failure becomes obvious and the micro-fracture surface has a smaller fractal dimension. In the triaxial compression test, energy storage, dissipation and release occur. When the storage limit is reached, the internal elastic strain energy releases sharply and the damage variable increases rapidly. As the confining pressure increases, the number of tensile and shear cracks is accumulated in an ‘S’ shape. Meanwhile, the proportion of shear cracks increases gradually.
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