Abstract
In rock mass cutting, the two main failure modes are ductile failure and brittle failure, and it strongly influence the rock breaking efficiency of the drilling bit. As such, investigation into the ductile–brittle failure transition (DBT) mechanism during rock cutting is crucial, especially for hard brittle rock. In the present study, a discrete-finite element model of heterogeneous granite was created and used for rock cutting experiments, so as to reproduce the cutting force and rock chip formation process. In addition, to interpret the DBT mechanism of granite cutting, theoretical models of mechanical specific energy (MSE) considering damaged zone, mean value of equivalent stiffness degradation (SDEG) and self-interlocking coefficient were developed. The study found that the cutting force bilinearly increases with the increase of cutting depth, and the cutter would crush the rock beneath the cutter tip. The average equivalent rock SDEG of the crushed zone reflects the damage value of rock chips. The critical transition depth (CTD) obtained using the theoretical models were almost equal. The self-interlocking of the crushed zone led to the secondary crushing of rock chips, which was the primary cause of ductile failure. Further, the self-interlocking was more obvious at large back rake angles and small depths, which consumed more energy. Reducing the self-interlocking of the crushed zone and increasing the ratio of brittle failure could effectively improve the rock breaking efficiency. The present study provides new insights from numerical simulations of DBT in rock cutting, and provides a basis for optimizing the cutter parameters of the drill bit.
Article highlights
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A discrete-finite element model for heterogeneous granite according to Voronoi tessellation was established.
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Theoretical models of new MSE is proposed, which considers the damaged zone beneath the cutter tip.
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The characteristics of DBT from the perspective of cutting force, boundary effect, and rock chips morphology were reproduced numerically and experimentally.
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The causes of DBT of hard brittle granite were analyzed—self-interlocking and secondary crushing of chips.
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Data availability
All participants state that the contents of the article do not contain unknown, fake or false data. The data generated in the present study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The present study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.52034006, 52004229), Regional Innovation Cooperation project of Sichuan Province (2022YFQ0059), Science and technology strategic cooperation project between Nanchong city and Southwest Petroleum University (SXHZ004). Such support is greatly appreciated by the authors.
Funding
National Natural Science Foundation of China, 52034006, Xiaohua Zhu, 52004229, Xiaohua Zhu, Regional Innovation Cooperation project of Sichuan Province, 2022YFQ0059, Weiji Liu, Science and technology strategic cooperation project between Nanchong city and Southwest Petroleum University, SXHZ004, Weiji Liu.
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WL contributed to the conception of the study; YL participated in the establishment of the numerical simulation model and related data processing, analysis and manuscript writing; WL and FY participated in the experiment operation and related data processing; and XZ helped perform the analysis with constructive discussions.
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Liu, W., Luo, Y., Zhu, X. et al. The ductile–brittle failure mode transition of hard brittle rock cutting—new insights from numerical simulation. Geomech. Geophys. Geo-energ. Geo-resour. 8, 129 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40948-022-00438-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40948-022-00438-7