Evaluating Tensile Fractures in Rigid Clasts with Very High Aspect Ratio

We investigate how a highly elliptical and mechanically rigid clast embedded in an infinite rock mass respond to the far-field stresses. The numerical analysis is carried out on elliptical clasts with aspect ratios ranging from 13.5 to 58.5, oriented at a right angle to the maximum far-field stress. A 2D plane strain model has been adopted to decipher the states of stress inside elliptical clasts. We argue that the tensile stress within the clasts gets enhanced and develops systematic mode-I (tensile) fractures within it as the far-field stress increases. We conclude that the intra-clast tensile stress decreases with increasing clast ellipticity, i.e., tensile fractures develop more easily within clasts with higher aspect ratios (~>20) while a higher far field tensile stress is required to fracture clasts with lower aspect ratios. We also interpret that stress enhancement is independent of the clast area and inter-focii distance of the clast, whilst the aspect ratio of the clast is found to be crucial for the development of tensile fractures within the elliptical clast for a constant material property.