PFC In-Person Introductory Course
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This four-day course (eight 4-hour sessions) provides guidance in the use of the Itasca codes PFC2D and PFC3D to simulate the mechanical behavior of granular and solid materials. The focus is on simulating the fracture and flow of brittle rock-like materials. The PFC codes provide a general distinct-element engine along with PYTHON and the embedded language FISH, which provide full access to the internal variables of the model and allow one to implement user-defined behaviors. Most PFC modeling requires the use of PYTHON and/or FISH. After the distinct-element framework that forms the theoretical basis for PFC is understood and PYTHON/FISH is mastered, the PFC codes can be used to simulate any physical process whose physics can be described by the interactions of discrete bodies. The course combines lectures with hands-on modeling exercises; thus, each student should have their own laptop computer on which the PFC codes can be run.
Days 1: Software Fundamentals (2)
Part 1
- Itasca & PFC (consulting & software, PFC & other Itasca codes)
- PFC: Historical Development and Engineering Applications
- PFC Physics
Part 2
- Granular Flow
- Graphical User Interface (working with PFC)
- Logics Overview (code concepts)
- Hands On: Simple Training Files (no FISH)
Days 2: Software Fundamentals (2)
Part 1
- Hands On: Simple Training Files (no FISH) --- continuation
- PFC & FISH
Part2
- Hands On: Simple Training Files (FISH Tutorials)
Days 3: Bonded-Particle/Block Modeling (2)
Part 1
- Bonded-Particle Modeling (BPM), and The PFC Model
- Material-Modeling Support in PFC (allows one to generate a synthetic material for subsequent boundary-value modeling, and calibrate that material by performing standard materials tests upon it)
Part 2
- Bonded-Block Modeling (BBM, bonded assemblies of rigid blocks) 3
- Hands On: BPM Exercise (create and test a dense sandstone, then degrade its microproperties)
Days 4: Workshop, Advanced Topic and Open-Floor Discussion (2)
Part 1
- Hands On: Workshop Example (one of these)
- Recycled Aggregate Concrete (tension & compression tests)
- Borehole Breakout
- Rock Cutting
Part 2
- PFC & PYTHON (Derrick Blanksma lecture)
- Open-Floor Discussion: Each student presents their modeling goals, and we jointly formulate modeling strategies.
