Research on a numerical model of real mesostructures in the non-shear zone of clay

Abstract

The conventional numerical simulations of rock and soil are mainly concerned with the macroscopic continuous model or the pseudo-microscopic model established using the discrete-element method (DEM). However, these adopted models are not completely consistent with actual soil samples. To explore the evolution law of the internal stresses of soil samples from the mesoscopic perspective, we proposed an image-finite-element method for studying the deflection angles and the shear stresses at four points in the non-shear zone of clay with real mesostructures. The approach allowed for a realistic distribution of the pore structures and avoided any virtualization, thereby significantly improving the veracity of the mesoscopic model. It worked by using a microscopic lens and a charge-coupled device (CCD) to capture the two-dimensional (2D) meso image in the non-shear zone, and then convert this digital image into a vector image recognized by the finite-element software (ABAQUS) through image-processing techniques, and import it into a numerical model, and then carry out a numerical calculation. For the purposes of performing a