DEM Analysis of Geomechanical Properties of Cemented Methane Hydrate–Bearing Soils at Different Temperatures and Pressures
Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 16, Issue 3
Abstract
Mechanical properties of methane hydrate–bearing soils are influenced by the surrounding temperature and pore pressure. Studies of such influences are of great significance for the safe exploration of methane hydrate. First, a thermo-hydro-mechanical bond contact model is introduced to elucidate the microscopic contact scale behavior of grains with methane hydrate bonds. Second, such a model is incorporated into the distinct-element method (DEM), and a dimensionless temperature-pressure distance parameter is introduced. The influences of temperature and pore pressure along heating and depressurization paths are analyzed by conducting DEM biaxial compression tests, which are also compared with the results of laboratory triaxial compression tests conducted by others. The variation rules of the macromechanical properties (i.e., strength, elastic modulus, peak friction angle, cohesion, and dilatancy angle) with changing temperatures and pore pressures are then analyzed for different effective confining pressures and methane hydrate saturations in the DEM biaxial compression tests, which helps to provide an initial reference for practical applications. Finally, the microscopic mechanisms that affect the macromechanical characteristics are investigated via the ratio of intact bonds under different loading conditions. The results demonstrate that the DEM biaxial compression tests incorporating the bond contact model can efficiently capture the influences of temperature and pore pressure on the macromechanical properties of methane hydrate–bearing soils. It is shown here that temperature and pore pressure affect the mechanical properties of interparticle methane hydrate and, in turn, influence the macroscopic mechanical behavior of methane hydrate–bearing soils.
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Acknowledgments
The research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China with Grant Number 51379180, Project of State Key Laboratory for Disaster Reduction in Civil Engineering, Tongji University of China with Grant Number SLDRCE14-A-04, and the China National Funds for Distinguished Youth Scientists with Grant Number 51025932. All these supports are greatly appreciated. In addition, the authors thank the reviewers and Dr. Colin Thornton at the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, for their valuable comments, which have improved the quality of this paper.
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International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 16 • Issue 3 • June 2016
Copyright
© 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Dec 8, 2014
Accepted: Sep 4, 2015
Published online: Dec 16, 2015
Discussion open until: May 16, 2016
Published in print: Jun 1, 2016
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