Numerical Simulation for Rock Fracturing Process under Action of Disc Cutter

Three-dimensional dynamic fracture process of rock under action of disc cutter is simulated by using nonlinear finite element method. Rock constitutive relationship is characterized by Drucker-Prager model. The influences of disc angular velocity and vertical force on the penetration depth and the specific energy are systematically investigated. The simulation results show that the rock fracturing process obviously presents properties of step crushing under action of disc cutter. The proposed numerical simulation presents an improvement on existing ones in terms of providing three-dimensional visual description of rock fracturing process.