Experimental testing and numerical simulations of blast-induced fracture of dolomite rock

Abstract

In this paper, the Johnson-Holmquist II (JH-2) model with parameters for a dolomite rock was used for simulating rock fragmentation. The numerical simulations were followed by experimental tests. Blast holes were drilled in two different samples of the dolomite, and an emulsion high explosive was inserted. The first sample was used to measure acceleration histories, and the cracking pattern was analyzed to perform a detailed study of the blast-induced fracture to validate the proposed method of modelling and to analyze the capability of the JH-2 model for the dolomite. The second sample was used for further validation by scanning the fragments obtained after blasting. The geometries of the fragments were compared with numerical simulations to further validate the proposed method of modelling and the implemented material model. The outcomes are promising, and further study is planned for simulating and optimizing parallel cut-hole blasting.