ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Investigating Water Permeation through
the Soil-Rock Mixture in Underground
Engineering
Yingchao Wang1,2, Fanshu Meng2, Fan Geng3, Hongwen Jing1, Ning Zhao2
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1State Key Laboratory for Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, China University of Mining
and Technology, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221116, China
2School of Mechanics and Civil Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology,
Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221116, China
3School of Electrical and Power Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology,
Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221116, China
Submission date: 2016-10-28
Final revision date: 2017-02-10
Acceptance date: 2017-02-23
Online publication date: 2017-07-12
Publication date: 2017-07-25
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2017;26(4):1777-1788
KEYWORDS
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ABSTRACT
Groundwater inrush within faults is an important issue in underground engineering. The process of
water permeation through the soil-rock mixture has been numerically investigated. The simulated soil-rock
mixture was presented with rock blocks, and filled with selected types of soil particles. The Euler-Euler
method was employed with multiphase interaction. Meanwhile, the filling soil was assumed to be Bingham
fluid with additional user-defined function. Then the detailed evolutions of water permeation through the
soil-rock mixture were presented visually, including water distribution, water velocity field, permeation
time, and penetration time. It is shown that water permeation changes with time and space in the soil-rock
mixture, and the overall process of water permeation can be divided into three different stages. Moreover,
major variables including water velocity, size of soil particles, and yield stress of soil were considered,
which clearly influenced water permeation. Soil density showed little effect on water permeation, and the
permeation time decreases with increasing water velocity. Water permeation through the soil-rock mixture
is easier when the filling soil consists of smaller particles. The permeation rate of water obviously decreases
with increasing yield stress. Meanwhile, different types of soils were considered with corrections on the
dynamic viscosities. We found that sand and soil behave differently when water permeates through the soilrock
mixture. Furthermore, selected results on water permeation were compared with the relevant studies,
and reasonable agreements were reached. The presented stimulation results provide detailed information for
further understanding on the mechanical mechanism of water permeation through the soil-rock mixture used
in underground engineering.