Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris

The sensitivity of the ice-water transition in glacial debris to temperature rise has become a significant concern. In recent years, there has been an increase in reports of ice avalanches caused by the thawing of glacial debris, which can be attributed to the impact of global warming. To study the...

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Main Authors: Qiujie MENG, Yixiang SONG, Da HUANG, Wenzhu MA, Zhu ZHONG
Format: Article
Language:zho
Published: Editorial Office of Journal of China Coal Society 2025-04-01
Series:Meitan xuebao
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Online Access:http://www.mtxb.com.cn/article/doi/10.13225/j.cnki.jccs.2023.1610
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author Qiujie MENG
Yixiang SONG
Da HUANG
Wenzhu MA
Zhu ZHONG
author_facet Qiujie MENG
Yixiang SONG
Da HUANG
Wenzhu MA
Zhu ZHONG
author_sort Qiujie MENG
collection DOAJ
description The sensitivity of the ice-water transition in glacial debris to temperature rise has become a significant concern. In recent years, there has been an increase in reports of ice avalanches caused by the thawing of glacial debris, which can be attributed to the impact of global warming. To study the temperature-dependent degradation of shear strength in glacial debris, a Finite Discrete Element Model (F-DEM) was developed. This model consists of solid permafrost and gravel elements and cohesive elements, as well as cohesive elements. The strength degradation law of the glacial debris, as observed in tests, is described as a strength degradation process of the cohesive elements. Initially, cohesive elements using the “traction-separation” criterion are set in between solid elements to represent interstitial ice. Subsequently, a strength degradation law governing the degradation law is implemented through the development of the VUSDFLD subroutine in Abaqus. The strength degradation of the cohesive elements is controlled by temperature field variables. The macroscopic numerical results obtained from the simulation were compared to experimental results. The simulated shear characteristics, including peak shear strength, deformation mode, and failure mode closely matched the experimental findings. The influence of three different factors, namely the thawing rate, gravel content, and stress magnitude on shear behavior was investigated. When the thawing rate is less than or equal to 2%, the failure mode exhibits a rough “serrated” pattern; as the thawing rate increases (> 2%), the shear surface gradually transitions to a smoother “circular arc” shape. The significant difference in strength at the permafrost-gravel interface can easily lead to stress concentration, resulting in cracks propagating along the interface. Increasing gravel content leads to a decrease in the shear strength of glacial debris, and the sensitivity of the shear strength to gravel content decreases with increasing thawing ratio. Under high shear loading, even a slight increase in temperature can cause sudden changes in shear strain. The deformation under constant load can be divided into three stages: the initial stage, the developmental stage, and the rapid deformation stage. In the initial stage, shear strain initially increases and then stabilizes; and during the developmental stage, there is a critical point in strain; during the rapid deformation stage, shear strain increases rapidly. The temperature of the critical point decreases with an increase in initial shear stress, and they are approximately linearly related. At higher shear stress levels, the shear strain of glacial debris is highly sensitive to temperature changes. Further studies should be conducted on model simplification, variation laws of parameters, phase transitions, and size effects to better simulate the shear strength degradation behavior under actual glaciers.
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publisher Editorial Office of Journal of China Coal Society
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spelling doaj-art-0179c30697674bf8bd1211f93adffb242025-08-20T03:12:10ZzhoEditorial Office of Journal of China Coal SocietyMeitan xuebao0253-99932025-04-015042051206210.13225/j.cnki.jccs.2023.16102023-1610Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debrisQiujie MENG0Yixiang SONG1Da HUANG2Wenzhu MA3Zhu ZHONG4School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, ChinaSchool of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, ChinaSchool of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, ChinaSchool of Civil and Resource Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, ChinaCollege of Civil Engineering & Architecture, China Three Gorges University, Yichang 443002, ChinaThe sensitivity of the ice-water transition in glacial debris to temperature rise has become a significant concern. In recent years, there has been an increase in reports of ice avalanches caused by the thawing of glacial debris, which can be attributed to the impact of global warming. To study the temperature-dependent degradation of shear strength in glacial debris, a Finite Discrete Element Model (F-DEM) was developed. This model consists of solid permafrost and gravel elements and cohesive elements, as well as cohesive elements. The strength degradation law of the glacial debris, as observed in tests, is described as a strength degradation process of the cohesive elements. Initially, cohesive elements using the “traction-separation” criterion are set in between solid elements to represent interstitial ice. Subsequently, a strength degradation law governing the degradation law is implemented through the development of the VUSDFLD subroutine in Abaqus. The strength degradation of the cohesive elements is controlled by temperature field variables. The macroscopic numerical results obtained from the simulation were compared to experimental results. The simulated shear characteristics, including peak shear strength, deformation mode, and failure mode closely matched the experimental findings. The influence of three different factors, namely the thawing rate, gravel content, and stress magnitude on shear behavior was investigated. When the thawing rate is less than or equal to 2%, the failure mode exhibits a rough “serrated” pattern; as the thawing rate increases (> 2%), the shear surface gradually transitions to a smoother “circular arc” shape. The significant difference in strength at the permafrost-gravel interface can easily lead to stress concentration, resulting in cracks propagating along the interface. Increasing gravel content leads to a decrease in the shear strength of glacial debris, and the sensitivity of the shear strength to gravel content decreases with increasing thawing ratio. Under high shear loading, even a slight increase in temperature can cause sudden changes in shear strain. The deformation under constant load can be divided into three stages: the initial stage, the developmental stage, and the rapid deformation stage. In the initial stage, shear strain initially increases and then stabilizes; and during the developmental stage, there is a critical point in strain; during the rapid deformation stage, shear strain increases rapidly. The temperature of the critical point decreases with an increase in initial shear stress, and they are approximately linearly related. At higher shear stress levels, the shear strain of glacial debris is highly sensitive to temperature changes. Further studies should be conducted on model simplification, variation laws of parameters, phase transitions, and size effects to better simulate the shear strength degradation behavior under actual glaciers.http://www.mtxb.com.cn/article/doi/10.13225/j.cnki.jccs.2023.1610glacial debristhawingdirect shear testshear behaviorf-dem
spellingShingle Qiujie MENG
Yixiang SONG
Da HUANG
Wenzhu MA
Zhu ZHONG
Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
Meitan xuebao
glacial debris
thawing
direct shear test
shear behavior
f-dem
title Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
title_full Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
title_fullStr Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
title_full_unstemmed Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
title_short Numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
title_sort numerical study on the mechanism of shear performance degradation of thawing glacial debris
topic glacial debris
thawing
direct shear test
shear behavior
f-dem
url http://www.mtxb.com.cn/article/doi/10.13225/j.cnki.jccs.2023.1610
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AT yixiangsong numericalstudyonthemechanismofshearperformancedegradationofthawingglacialdebris
AT dahuang numericalstudyonthemechanismofshearperformancedegradationofthawingglacialdebris
AT wenzhuma numericalstudyonthemechanismofshearperformancedegradationofthawingglacialdebris
AT zhuzhong numericalstudyonthemechanismofshearperformancedegradationofthawingglacialdebris