Abstract:Uniaxial compressive tests and particle contact tests were conducted to investigate mechanical properties and failure modes of gypsum test specimens using rock rheological testing system. Results show that cylinder specimens under the uniaxial compression tests fail directly in condition of uniform stress, while spherical specimens under the contact tests fail repeatedly with particle breakage in condition of stress concentration. In addition, even for the same kind of material, microscopic calculation parameters vary greatly with discrete element model. The microscopic calculation parameters of the specimens under different kinds of stress situation need to be calibrated separately.