Numerical Analysis of Shear and Particle Crushing Characteristics in Ring Shear System Using the PFC2D

3D DEM Analysis of Particle Breakage Effect on Direct Shear Tests of Coarse Sand

This paper explores the effect of particle breakage on the mechanical behavior of coarse sand through 3D Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulations of direct shear tests (DST). The objective is to gain insights into the macro- and micro-mechanical behaviors of crushable coarse sand, with a particular focus on the stress-strain relationship, volumetric deformation, and evolution of grain crushing. The simulations involve a comparison between non-crushable and crushable particle models, where the crushable particles are implemented in the shear zone of the DST subjected to different high normal stresses. The findings indicate that the crushable particles experience partial crushing at peak shear stress, with further particle crushing leading to the production of finer particles at the shearing plane during shearing at the critical state. The migration of these finer particles under pressure and gravity generates their accumulation predominantly in the lower section of the simulation box. Importantly, the presence of crushing in the DST induces a decrease in the shear stress and an increase in the volumetric strain leading to contractive behavior instead of dilation, which gradually stabilizes the volumetric deformation at higher normal stresses.

Testing of Materials and Elements in Civil Engineering

This issue is proposed and organized as a means to present recent developments in the field of testing of materials in civil engineering. For this reason, the articles highlighted in this issue should relate to different aspects of testing of different materials in civil engineering, from building materials and elements to building structures. The current trend in the development of materials testing in civil engineering is mainly concerned with the detection of flaws and defects in elements and structures using destructive, semi-destructive, and nondestructive testing. The trend, as in medicine, is toward designing test equipment that allows one to obtain a picture of the inside of the tested element and materials. Very interesting results with significance for building practices of testing of materials and elements in civil engineering were obtained.