Application and prospects of 3D printing in physical experiments of rock mass mechanics and engineering: materials, methodologies and models

The existence of joints or other kinds of discontinuities has a dramatic effect on the stability of rock excavations and engineering. As a result, a great challenge in rock mass mechanics testing is to prepare rock or rock-like samples with defects. In recent years, 3D printing technology has become a promising tool in the field of rock mass mechanics and engineering. This study first reviews and discusses the research status of traditional test methods in rock mass mechanics tests of making rock samples with defects. Then, based on the comprehensive analysis of previous research, the application of 3D printing technology in rock mass mechanics is expounded from the following three aspects. The first is the printing material. Although there are many materials for 3D printing, it has been found that 3D printing materials that can be used for rock mass mechanics research are very limited. After research, we summarize and evaluate printing material that can be used for rock mass mechanics studies. The second is the printing methodology, which mainly introduces the current application forms of 3D printing technology in rock mass mechanics. This includes printed precise casting molds and one-time printed samples. The last one is the printing model, which includes small-scale samples for mechanical tests and large-scale physical models. Then, the benefits and drawbacks of using 3D printing samples in mechanical tests and the validity of their simulation of real rock are discussed. Compared with traditional rock samples collected in nature or synthetic rock-like samples, the samples made by 3D printing technology have unique advantages, such as higher test repeatability, visualization of rock internal structure and stress distribution. There is thus great potential for the use of 3D printing in the field of rock mass mechanics. However, 3D printing materials also have shortcomings, such as insufficient material strength and accuracy at this stage. Finally, the application prospect of 3D printing technology in rock mass mechanics research is proposed.