Elastic-plastic Analysis of Jointed Rock Mass Using Meshless Method

Analysis of rock masses with plenty of weakness planes and joints with numerical methods based on meshes encounters difficulties. In the analysis when even only a few meshes are involved, mesh generation can consume more time and effort compared to the construction and solution of the discrete set of equations. Continuous remeshing of the domain in order to avoid the break down of the calculation due to excessive mesh distortion is other concern. These problems lead in reducing accuracy and increasing complexity in computer codes. To overcome these shortcomings recently the meshfree methods have been developed and found applications in different engineering fields. In this paper the application of mesh-free (Element Free Galerkin) method in analyzing the nonlinear and elastoplastic behavior of jointed rock mass is presented. This is a new application of such method. In this method, there is no need to use meshes or elements for field variable interpolation. The nodes remain constant while the geometry of the domain is changing, therefore saving the time and computational effort in analyzing process. A few examples of application of the method in predicting the plastic behavior of jointed rocks are presented, good results and the suitability of the method is highlighted.