Numerical 3D modelling of the effects of strain rate and confining pressure on the compressive behavior of Kuru granite

This paper deals with numerical modeling of the compressive behavior of granite rock under high strain rate dynamic loading and wide range of confining pressure. For this end, a constitutive model based on damage mechanics and viscoplasticity for rock is formulated and implemented in explicit dynamics FEM. The viscoplastic part is based on a simple power law type yield criterion that incorporates the rate-dependency with a linear viscosity term. Moreover, a Rankine type of tensile cut-off is employed. The damage part of the model is formulated with separate scalar damage variables in tension and compression. The model is calibrated for Kuru granite and validated with the experimental data from dynamic compression tests at the strain rate of 600 1/s up to 225 MPa of confining pressure. The numerical simulations demonstrate that, despite the underlying continuum modeling approach, the model captures the correct experimental failure modes, including the transition from single-to-multiple fragmentation, as well as the dynamic compressive strengths at different confining pressures.