Objective With the ongoing depletion of shallow mineral resources, deep mining operations often exceeding depths of 1 000 m have become increasingly common. In such high-stress environments, the coupled effect of in situ stress and pre-existing joint networks significantly influences rock blasting performance. However, most traditional studies focus on homogeneous or regularly jointed rocks, which fail to represent the geometric randomness and complexity of natural joint distributions. This study aims to investigate the mechanisms of blast-induced damage and fragmentation in jointed rock masses under varying in situ stress conditions. Specifically, it examines how joint density, burial depth, and charge diameter interactively influence microcrack propagation, fractal complexity, and energy dissipation behavior during blasting, with the goal of providing guidance for efficient blasting in deep rock masses. Methods A two-dimensional numerical blasting model was developed using the Particle Flow Code in 2D (PFC2D), with a discrete fracture network (DFN) incorporated to construct a synthetic rock mass (SRM). The joint planes were modeled using the Smooth Joint Model (SJM), and the intact rock matrix was represented by the Parallel Bond Model (PBM). The blasting load was applied through the particle expansion method, and the loading curve was defined by a half-sine waveform. The micro-mechanical parameters of the model were calibrated against laboratory test results of limestone samples, including uniaxial compression, triaxial compression, and Brazilian tensile tests to ensure the physical accuracy of the simulation. The simulations covered five joint densities (P10=2~10 m-1), five burial depths (300~1 500 m), and five charge diameters (0.010~0.018 m). The output indicators included microcrack count, peak stress, energy distribution (kinetic, strain, and frictional energy), fractal dimension of crack networks, and block size distribution. In addition, a custom FISH script was developed to identify fragmented blocks and quantify post-blast fragment size distribution. Results and discussions The results showed that joint density had a non-monotonic influence on fragmentation behavior. At low joint densities, microcrack formation was enhanced due to localized stress concentrations near joint tips. However, as density increased, joint interfaces acted as preferential energy dissipation paths, which reduced the formation of new cracks and decreased the fractal dimension of the crack network. Peak stress propagation showed an exponential attenuation pattern, with up to a 25.97% reduction at high joint densities due to enhanced wave scattering and reflection. Increasing in-situ stress led to a marked reduction in microcrack count and fractal dimension, which indicated more localized and constrained damage zones. Under high stress conditions, microcracks tended to align along the direction of maximum principal stress, particularly in jointed media. A stronger inhibitory effect of joint density on microcrack development was observed at lower stress levels, which highlighted the interactive coupling between these two parameters. Energy analysis revealed that strain energy storage decreased with increasing joint density, while frictional dissipation became more prominent. Kinetic energy remained relatively insensitive to joint configuration. Block size distribution analysis indicated a shift toward finer fragmentation with increased joint density, which demonstrated higher energy efficiency in rock breakage under joint-controlled failure modes. Regarding charge diameter, increasing the diameter enlarged the fragmented zone and increased the number of microcracks. However, beyond a critical diameter (approximately 0.016 m), both the microcrack count and fractal complexity plateaued, which indicated saturation in the fragmentation mechanism. At this stage, a further increase in charge size contributed to over-crushing and inefficient energy utilization. Conclusions This study establishes a PFC2D-based numerical model that couples in-situ stress with randomly distributed joints to simulate the dynamic blasting behavior of jointed rock masses. The simulation results indicate that increasing joint density reduces crack complexity and encourages localized fracture patterns, whereas in-situ stress further restricts crack propagation and raises directional growth along the principal stress direction. The interaction between joint density and stress is nonlinear, with more pronounced suppression of fracture development at lower stress levels. Although larger charge diameters expand the fragmentation zone, the growth in crack complexity reaches saturation beyond a threshold, indicating limited improvement in breakage efficiency. Overall, the model provides theoretical support and design guidance for efficient blasting in deep, jointed rock masses.
为了研究节理岩体在爆炸载荷下的破裂行为,将离散裂隙网络(diserete fracture network,DFN)引入到完整岩体模型中,采用节理岩体建模先进方法(synthetic rock mass,SRM)建立随机节理岩体,如图2所示。SRM岩体由完整岩石以及离散裂隙网络DFN两部分组成,DFN可用于详尽描述岩体结构面的空间分布和特征。其中,岩石粒子之间接触采用线性平行接触模型(PBM)描述。DFN采用光滑节理模型(SJM)描述岩石粒子之间的力学特性[26‒27]。SRM能够有效模拟节理面之间的滑动及开裂过程。
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