Influence of joint dip angle on seismic behaviors of rock foundation

The seismic response of rock foundation to seismic loads is an important issue to the stability and safety of nuclear power plants. Due to the fact that the discontinuities like joints existing in the rock mass govern principally the deformation and failure behaviors of the rock mass, the influence of discontinuities on the seismic behaviors of rock mass remains as one of the fundamental problems in the safety assessment of nuclear power plants. In this study, the distinct element method (DEM) and finite element method (FEM) were adopted to investigate the seismic responses of rock foundation to a real seismic wave, taking into account the effect of joint dip angle on the deformation and dynamic behaviors of rock foundation. In the DEM simulations, the intact rock has an amplification effect on the amplitudes of seismic waves, while the joints exhibit an attenuation effect on the seismic waves. In the FEM simulations, however, the attenuation effect of joints is not obvious. The dip angle of joints has strong effects on the deformation and dynamic behaviors of rock foundation, in terms that different dip angles lead to obviously different deformation and horizontal stress in the rock foundation when subjected to seismic load. When the dip angle of joints is around 60deg, the seismic velocity, displacement and stress reach the maximums. Therefore, attentions need to be paid on this factor during the seismic design of nuclear power plants. (author)