Investigating the influence of discontinuity parameters on blast-induced fragmentation

Fragmentation by blasting is a critical process in hard rock mining. The interaction between the rock mass and blast energy influences the outcomes, specifically on the rock mass response to higher stresses and loading rates, and the properties of structures. In this study, LS-DYNA is used to model the nonlinear dynamic fracturing of the rock to understand the effects of rock mass properties on the blast outcomes. The results are verified and compared with the case study, and they show that the formation of damage zones around the charge is highly influenced by rock mass strength and discontinuity properties.