Parametric study of interface dynamics for sliding contact of elastic body on a rigid surface using Burridge-Knoppoff model

To explore the role of friction along a fault on the earthquake mechanism a simple model proposed by Burridge and Knopoff in 1967. The model is composed of a series of blocks of equal mass connected to each other by springs of same stiffness. The blocks also are attached to a rigid driver via another set of springs that pulls them at a constant velocity against a rigid substrate. In their work a special friction law which takes seismic radiation and viscosity effects into account is considered. They studied dynamics of interface via a especial case with ten blocks and specific properties. In our study we perform a parametric study for BK model using Amonton-Coulomb friction law. Sliding contact of an elastic body on a rigid substrate is addressed. The model dynamics is formulated as a system of coupled nonlinear ordinary differential equations in state-space form which lends itself to numerical integration methods, e.g. Runge-Kutta procedure for solution. A broad range of parametric space including driver speed, spring stiffness’s and block masses is considered. Especially effects of increasing the number of blocks on the motion of lattice and reproducibility of the obtained results is discussed.