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Volume 117
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Influence of fines content on the evolution of fabric anisotropy in granular materials: DEM simulations and theoretical modelling
Chaofa Zhao a, Yunfei Jiang a, Aoxi Zhang a *, Yuxuan Wen b
a State Key Laboratory of Soil Pollution Control and Safety, Department of Civil Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
b State Key Laboratory for Safety and Resilience of Civil Engineering in Mountain Areas, East China Jiaotong University, Nanchang, 330013, China
10.1016/j.partic.2026.08.003
Volume 117, October 2026, Pages 411-425
Received 17 June 2026, Revised 21 July 2026, Accepted 6 August 2026, Available online 12 August 2026, Version of Record 20 August 2026.
E-mail: aoxi.zhang@zju.edu.cn
Highlights

• DEM undrained triaxial tests span a broad fines content range (0–60%).

• A threshold fines content marks the coarse- to fines-dominated transition.

• Fabric anisotropy varies non-monotonically with increasing fines content.

• A fabric evolution law explicitly incorporating fines content is proposed.


Abstract

Granular soils encountered in engineering practice are commonly composed of mixtures of coarse and fine particles, for which fines content plays a critical role in governing the mechanical behaviour. While previous studies have shown that fabric anisotropy significantly influences the macroscopic response of granular materials, its evolution in fines-containing soils remains insufficiently understood. In particular, existing fabric evolution laws have been primarily developed for well-graded soils and do not explicitly account for the influence of fines content. To address this limitation, this study investigates the influence of fines content on the evolution of fabric anisotropy using the Discrete Element Method (DEM) and formulates a fabric evolution law considering a broad range of fines content. A series of undrained triaxial compression simulations has been conducted on granular assemblies with varying fines contents, initial densities, and confining pressures. The evolution of both macroscopic behaviour and microstructural characteristics is systematically analysed. The results reveal that fines content governs a clear transition in both mechanical behaviour and fabric evolution, characterised by a threshold fines content. Fabric anisotropy exhibits a characteristic evolution pattern during shearing and shows a non-monotonic dependence on fines content. Based on these observations, a fines content-dependent fabric evolution law has been proposed. The proposed model shows good agreement with DEM results across a wide range of conditions, demonstrating its capability to capture the influence of fines content on fabric evolution. The findings provide new insights into the micro-mechanical behaviour of fines-containing granular materials and offer a basis for developing advanced constitutive models incorporating fabric effects.

Graphical abstract
Keywords
Granular material; Fines content; Fabric anisotropy; DEM simulation
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