Summary
The objective of this work is to lead to improved models of seismic wave propagation around underground openings by studying the interaction of the waves with the fractured rock surrounding these openings. It demonstrates that seismic models can help in stability problems such as rockbursting in deep-level mining, or in the interpretation of micro-fracturing at waste storage sites. A significant emphasis is placed on comparing the models with observations from controlled experiments. These comparisons demonstrate that the wave propagation can be reliably and accurately modelled, and in so doing it motivates their application to the larger rock engineering problems. Seismic wave models are first applied to laboratory experiments on multiple fractures. Simulation through multiple displacement discontinuities yields strikingly similar waveforms to the experiments, while also identifying the need to build stress dependence into the fracture models, such as stress dependent fracture stiffness. The wave-fracture modelling is extended to in situ fractures in rock at the surface of a deep tunnel, using data collected during an acoustic emission experiment at the URL Mine-by tunnel. Waveforms from the velocity scans are compared against those from elastic models and various models of fracture, such as random assemblies of small open fractures (cracks) and larger fractures with fracture stiffness. Results indicate that it is possible to account for the wave-speeds and amplitudes using models with fractures. A generic method is then proposed for calculating the frequency variation of wave-speed and amplitude for any collection of cracks. The models of fracture are then applied to the rockburst problem, to investigate how the excavation affects the amplitude and the distribution of ground motion. The results provide important insights into the causes of the apparent amplification observed by researchers in this field. The thesis also covers the theory of the models used, including novel numerical work on dispersion and new grid schemes. The full detail of the work cannot be covered in this paper which instead seeks to summarize the main achievements.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Aki K, Richards PG (1980) Quantitative seismology: theory and methods. Freeman, Cooper, San Francisco, vol. 2, section 13.6, pp 773–795
SC Bandis AC Lumsden NR Barton (1983) ArticleTitleFundamentals of rock joint deformation Int J Rock Mech 20 IssueID6 249–268 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0148-9062(83)90595-8
Brady BH (1990) Dynamic performance and design of underground excavations in jointed rock. In: Brummer RK (ed) Static and dynamic considerations in Rock Engineering. Balkema, pp 1–11
InstitutionalAuthorNameBSSA (1991) ArticleTitleThe 1989 Loma Prieta, California, earthquake and its effects: special issue B Seismol Soc Am 81 IssueID5 1415–2166
Carlson SR, Young RP (1992) Acoustic emission and ultrasonic velocity study of excavation-induced microcrack damage in the mine-by tunnel at the underground research laboratory. Report #RP015AECL to Atomic Energy of Canada, pp 1–50
SR Carlson RP Young (1993) ArticleTitleAcoustic emission and ultrasonic velocity study of excavation-induced microcrack damage at the underground research laboratory Int J Rock Mech 30 IssueID7 901–907 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0148-9062(93)90042-C
RT Coates M Schoenberg (1995) ArticleTitleFinite-difference modelling of faults and fractures Geophysics 60 IssueID5 1514–1526 Occurrence Handle10.1190/1.1443884
NGW Cook (1992) ArticleTitleNatural joints in rock: mechanical, hydraulic and seismic behaviour and properties under normal stress Int J Rock Mech Min Sci Geomech Abstr 29 198–223 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0148-9062(92)93656-5
S Crampin (1981) ArticleTitleA review of wave motion in anisotropic and cracked elastic-media Wave Motion 3 343–391 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0165-2125(81)90026-3
Cundall PA (1992) Theoretical basis of the program WAVE. Unpublished internal report, COMRO (now CSIR, Division of Mining Technology, South Africa), pp 1–12
Cundall PA, Lemos JV (1990) Numerical simulation of fault instabilities with a continuously-yielding joint model. Proc. of 2nd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 147–152
Daehnke A, Hildyard MW (1997) Dynamic fracture propagation due to stress waves interacting with stopes. Proc. of 1st Southern African Rock Engineering Symposium (SARES). Johannesburg, South Africa, pp 97–108
A Daehnke HP Rossmanith RE Knasmillner (1996) ArticleTitleUsing dynamic photoelasticity to evaluate the influence of parting planes on stress waves interacting with stopes Int J Numer Anal Met 20 IssueID2 101–117 Occurrence Handle10.1002/(SICI)1096-9853(199602)20:2<101::AID-NAG809>3.0.CO;2-K
Durrheim RJ, Roberts MKC, Hagan TO, Jager AJ, Handley MF, Spottiswoode SM, Ortlepp WD (1997) Factors influencing the severity of rockburst damage in Southern African gold mines. Proc. of 1st Southern African Rock Engineering Symposium (SARES). Johannesburg, South Africa, pp 17–24
RW Graves (1996) ArticleTitleSimulating seismic wave propagation in 3D elastic media using staggered-grid finite differences B Seismol Soc Am 86 IssueID4 1091–1106
Handley MF, Hildyard MW, Spottiswoode SM (1996) The influence of deep mine stopes on seismic waves. Proc. of the 2nd North American Rock Mechanics Symposium (NARMS). Montreal, pp 499–506
Hemp DA, Goldbach OD (1993) The effect of backfill on ground motion in a stope. In: Young RP (ed) Proc. of 3rd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 75–79
S Hestholm B Ruud (1994) ArticleTitle2D finite-difference elastic-wave modeling including surface-topography Geophys Prospect 42 IssueID5 371–390 Occurrence Handle10.1111/j.1365-2478.1994.tb00216.x
Hildyard MW (1995) WAVE developments. In: Develop a quantitative understanding of rockmass behaviour near excavations in deep mines. Unpublished SIMRAC final project report (GAP029), December 1995. CSIR Mining Technology, Johannesburg, South Africa, pp 17–51
Hildyard MW (2001) Wave interaction with underground openings in fractured rock. PhD Thesis, University of Liverpool, pp 1–283
MW Hildyard AM Milev (2001a) ArticleTitleSimulated rockburst experiment: development of a numerical model for seismic wave propagation from the blast, and forward analysis J South African Inst Min Metall 101 IssueID5 235–245
MW Hildyard AM Milev (2001b) ArticleTitleSimulated rockburst experiment: numerical back-analysis of seismic wave interaction with the tunnel J South African Inst Min Metall 101 IssueID5 223–234
MW Hildyard RP Young (2002) ArticleTitleModelling wave propagation around underground openings in fractured rock, Special issue on induced seismicity, ed., Trifu Pure Appl Geophys 159 247–276 Occurrence Handle10.1007/PL00001253
Hildyard MW, Daehnke A, Cundall PA (1995) WAVE: a computer program for investigating elastodynamic issues in mining. Proc. of 35th US Symp. on Rock Mech, June 1995. Balkema, pp 519–524
Hildyard MW, Napier JAL, Young RP (2001) The influence of an excavation on ground motion. Proc. of 5th Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines (RaSiM 5). Johannesburg, Sept. 2001, SA Inst. Min. Metall., pp 443–452
JA Hudson (1981) ArticleTitleWave speeds and attenuation of elastic waves in material containing cracks Geophys J Roy Astr S 64 133–150
Itasca Consulting Group (1993a) UDEC Version 2.0. Minneapolis, Minnesota
Itasca Consulting Group (1993b) FLAC Version 3.2. Minneapolis, Minnesota, pp 1–20
Jager AJ, Ryder JA (1999) A handbook on rock engineering practice for tabular hard rock mines. Published by The Safety in Mines Research Advisory Committee (SIMRAC). Johannesburg, South Africa
Z Jiangfeng (1997) ArticleTitleQuadrangle-grid velocity-stress finite-difference method for elastic wave propagation simulation Geophys J Int 131 127–134 Occurrence Handle10.1111/j.1365-246X.1997.tb00599.x
Linkov AM, Durrheim RJ (1998) Velocity amplification considered as a phenomenon of elastic energy release due to softening. Mechanics of Jointed and Faulted Rock, Balkema, pp 243–248
ER Liu JA Hudson T Pointer (2000) ArticleTitleEquivalent medium representation of fractured rock J Geophys Res 105 IssueIDB2 2981–3000 Occurrence Handle10.1029/1999JB900306
Mack MG, Crouch SL (1990) A dynamic boundary element method for modeling rockbursts. Proc. of 2nd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 93–99
R Madariaga (1976) ArticleTitleDynamics of an expanding circular fault B Seismol Soc Am 66 IssueID3 639–666
J Marti PA Cundall (1982) ArticleTitleMixed discretization procedure for accurate modelling of plastic collapse Int J Numer Anal Met Geomech 6 129–139 Occurrence Handle10.1002/nag.1610060109
McGarr A (1993) Keynote address: factors influencing the strong ground motion from mining-induced tremors. In: Young RP (ed) Proc. of 3rd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 3–12
A McGarr (1997) ArticleTitleA mechanism for high wall-rock velocities in rockbursts Pure Appl Geophys 150 381–391 Occurrence Handle10.1007/s000240050083
Milev AM, Spottiswoode SM, Stewart RD (1999) Dynamic response of the rock surrounding deep level mining excavations. Proc. of 9th ISRM Int. Congress on Rock Mech. Paris, pp 1109–1114
F Molenkamp DJ Kidger IM Smith (1992) ArticleTitleAccuracy of four-node standard finite element Int J Numer Anal Met 16 323–333 Occurrence Handle10.1002/nag.1610160503
Müller W (1991) Numerical simulation of rockbursts. Mining science and technology, vol. 12, pp 27–42
Myer LR, Hopkins D, Cook NGW (1985) Effect of contact area of an interface on acoustic wave transmission characteristics. Proc. of 26th US Symp. on Rock Mech. Balkema, pp 565–572
Myer LR, Hopkins D, Peterson JE, Cook NGW (1995) Seismic wave propagation across multiple fractures. In: Myer LR, Cook NGW, Goodman RE, Tsang P (eds) Fractured and jointed rock masses. Balkema, pp 105–109
JAL Napier MW Hildyard (1992) ArticleTitleSimulation of fracture growth around openings in highly stressed brittle rock J South African Inst Min Metall 6 159–168
RJ O’Connell B Budiansky (1974) ArticleTitleSeismic velocities in dry and saturated cracked solids J Geophys Res 79 5412–5426 Occurrence Handle10.1029/JB079i035p05412
Ortlepp WD (1993) High ground displacement velocities associated with rockburst damage. In: Young RP (ed) Proc. of 3rd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 101–106
LJ Pyrak-Nolte LR Myer NGW Cook (1990a) ArticleTitleTransmission of seismic waves across single natural fractures J Geophys Res 95 IssueIDB6 8617–8638
LJ Pyrak-Nolte LR Myer NGW Cook (1990b) ArticleTitleAnisotropy in seismic velocities and amplitudes from multiple parallel fractures J Geophys Res 95 IssueIDB7 11345–11358
Rockfield Software Ltd (1999) ELFEN user manual v.2.8. University College of Swansea
CM Sayers M Kachanov (1991) ArticleTitleA simple technique for finding effective elastic-constants of cracked solids for arbitrary crack orientation statistics Int J Solids Structures 27 IssueID6 671–680 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0020-7683(91)90027-D
M Schoenberg (1980) ArticleTitleElastic wave behaviour across linear slip interfaces J Acoust Soc Am 68 IssueID5 1516–1521 Occurrence Handle10.1121/1.385077
Siebrits E, Hildyard MW, Hemp DA (1993) Stability of backfilled stopes under dynamic excitation. In: Young RP (ed) Proc. of 3rd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 117–121
Spottiswoode SM, Durrheim RJ, Vakalisa B, Milev AM (1997) Influence of fracturing and support on the site response in deep tabular stopes. Proc. of 1st Southern African Rock Engineering Symposium (SARES). Johannesburg, South Africa, pp 62–67
Tinucci JP, Spearing AJS (1993) Strategies for clamping faults and dykes in high seismicity tabular mining conditions. In: Young RP (ed) Proc. of 3rd Int. Symp. on Rockbursts and Seismicity in Mines. Balkema, pp 435–440
Uenishi K (1997) Rayleigh pulse dynamic triggering of interface slip. PhD Thesis, Vienna University of Technology, pp 1–178
J Virieux (1984) ArticleTitleSH-wave propagation in heterogeneous media: velocity-stress finite-difference method Geophysics 49 IssueID4 1933–1957 Occurrence Handle10.1190/1.1441605
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hildyard, M. Manuel Rocha Medal Recipient Wave interaction with underground openings in fractured rock. Rock Mech. Rock Engng. 40, 531–561 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-007-0158-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-007-0158-3