# Morphological evolution indicates the transformation of stress interference in parallel fractures

## TL;DR

This study explores how fractures in materials evolve under stress, revealing how their shape changes as they interact with each other.

## Contribution

The paper introduces a new dual-fracture experiment and a stress interference factor to quantify fracture interactions.

## Key findings

- Fracture propagation regions are governed by varying degrees of stress interference.
- A regional transition occurs when the fracture radius approaches the spacing between fractures.
- Energy partitioning between storage and dissipation explains differences in fracture stagnation behavior.

## Abstract

Fracture propagation is ubiquitous in natural strata and geological engineering, influencing key processes such as engineering stability assessment and design optimization. While prior studies have investigated the propagation of individual fractures through gelatin experiments, stress interference between fractures has been less considered. This study presents an innovative mirror-symmetric dual-fracture experiment that dynamically correlates fracture morphology with stress interference. Using light attenuation, we quantified the morphological evolution and identified distinct propagation regions governed by different degrees of stress interference. The results indicate that a regional transition occurs when the fracture radius approaches the fracture spacing. We defined a stress interference factor (\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
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