Anisotropic dynamic damage and fragmentation of rock materials under explosive loading

This paper describes the development of a constitutive model for predicting dynamic anisotropic damage and fragmentation of rock materials under blast loading. In order to take account of the anisotropy of damage, a second rank symmetric damage tensor is introduced in the present model. Based on the mechanics of microcrack nucleation, growth and coalescence, the evolution of damage is formulated. The model provides a quantitative method to estimate the fragment distribution and fragment size generated by crack coalescence in the dynamic fragmentation process. It takes account of the experimental facts that a brittle rock material does not fail if the applied stress is lower than its static strength and certain time duration is needed for fracture to take place when it is subjected to a stress higher than its static strength. Numerical results are compared with those from independent field tests.