A 2-D meshless model for jointed rock structures

According to the characteristic structural features of jointed rock structu res, a meshless model is proposed for the mechanics analysis of jointed roc k structures based on the moving least-squares interpolants. In this model, a jointed rock structure is regarded as a system of relatively intact rock blocks connected by joints or planes of discontinuity; these rock blocks a re modelled by general shaped anisotropic blocks while these joints and pla nes of discontinuity are modelled by interfaces. The displacement field of each block is constructed by the moving least-squares interpolants with an array of points distributed in the block. To deal with the discontinuities of rock structures, the displacement fields are constructed to be discontin uous between blocks. The displacement fields and their gradients are contin uous in each block, hence no post processing is required for the output of strains and stresses. The finite element mesh is totally unnecessary, so th e time-consuming mesh generation is avoided. The rate of convergence can ex ceed that of finite elements significantly, and a high resolution of locali zed steep gradients can be achieved. Furthermore, the discontinuities of ro ck structures are also fully taken into consideration. The present method i s developed for two-dimensional linear elastic analysis of jointed rock str uctures, and can be extended to three-dimensional and non-linear analysis. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.