Building Blocks works seamlessly with the FLAC3D 6.0 extruder tool and new Model Pane. Building Blocks includes a library of model primates and users can also add and load their own building block sets.
Continuum numerical modeling is inherently limited when the rock behavior involves mechanisms such as spalling and bulking. The Bonded Block Model (BBM) approach simulates the initiation of cracks that can coalesce and/or propagate leading to extension and shear fracturing, as well as the rock (e.g., intact, jointed, or veined) strength dependency on confinement.
In this tutorial we will take a look at the different boundary conditions available to the user, and we will go over some examples of different scenarios in which they would be used.
A major use of DFN models for industrial applications is to evaluate permeability and flow structure in hardrock aquifers from geological observations of fracture networks. The relationship between the statistical fracture density distributions and permeability has been extensively studied, but there has been little interest in the spatial structure of DFN models, which is generally assumed to be spatially random (i.e., Poisson). In this paper, we compare the predictions of Poisson DFNs to new DFN models where fractures result from a growth process defined by simplified kinematic rules for nucleation, growth, and fracture arrest.
With increasing depth, higher stress and more difficult mining. With increasing depth is there more ground surface effects or less?