Strength failure behavior and crack evolution mechanism of granite containing pre-existing non-coplanar holes: Experimental study and particle flow modeling

In this study, uniaxial compression tests were conducted on granite specimens containing three non-coplanar holes. The relationships between the stress, acoustic emission (AE) and crack evolution process were analyzed using AE measuring and photographic monitoring techniques. Particle flow code (PFC) was then used to simulate the strength failure behaviors of the specimens with three non-coplanar holes under uniaxially loading. Four typical crack coalescence patterns were identified, i.e., shear, mixed tensile and shear, and tensile. The crack evolution mechanisms around the pre-existing holes in the granite specimens were revealed by an analysis of the force and displacement fields.