Experimental Rock Deformation - The Brittle Field

1. Front Matter

   Pages I-X

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2. Introduction

   Pages 1-3

3. Experimental Procedures

   Pages 5-16

4. Experimental Studies on the Brittle Fracture Stress

   Pages 17-44

5. Griffith Theory of Brittle Failure

   Pages 45-57

6. Evolution of Physical Properties during Brittle Failure

   Pages 59-114

7. Micromechanics of Brittle Fracture

   Pages 115-145

8. The Role of Pore Fluids

   Pages 147-163

9. Friction and Sliding Phenomena

   Pages 165-209

10. Brittle-Ductile Transition

    Pages 211-237

11. Back Matter

    Pages 239-347

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This monograph deals with the part of the field of experimental rock deformation that is dominated by the phenomena of brittle fracture on one scale or another. Thus a distinction has been drawn between the fields of brittle and ductile behaviour in rock, corresponding more or less to a distinction between the phenomena of fracture and flow. The last chapter deals with the transition between the two fields. In this new edition an attempt has been made to take into account new developments of the last two and a half decades. To assist in this project, the original author greatly appre- ates being joined by the second author. The scope of the monograph is limited to the mechanical properties of rock viewed as a material on the laboratory scale. Thus, the topic and approach is of a “materials science” kind rather than of a “structures” kind. We are dealing with only one part of the wider field of rock mechanics, a field which also includes structural or boundary value problems, for example, those of the stability of slopes, the collapse of mine openings, earthquakes, the folding of stratified rock, and the convective motion of the Earth’s mantle. One topic thus excluded is the role of jointing, which it is commonly necessary to take into account in applications in engineering and mining, and pr- ably often in geology too. Shock phenomena have also not been covered.

• Deformation
• Fundament
• evolution
• formation
• geoscience
• structural geology

From the reviews of the second edition:

"This book occupies a largely unfilled niche within the structural geology/rock mechanics literature. The novel approach that the authors have taken, that of presenting our current knowledge of brittle deformation as determined from laboratory experiments, has led to an informative, readable reference volume that will benefit many scientists. … The book admirably draws on a materials science approach … . is a comprehensive and unique text that will appeal to a broad range of people with an interest in brittle rock deformation." (D. R. Faulkner, Geological Magazine, Vol. 143, 2006)

"The book is a compact summary of the present state of the art in experimental rock mechanics at moderate stresses. … Compared to the earlier edition, the book has benefited from reorganization of the chapters. … Paterson and Wong’s book is an extremely valuable guide for any rock experimentalist. Owing to their expertise and care, the new edition is a significant improvement with a huge reference list for those who want to cover even more ground." (Achim Kopf, Surveys in Geophysics, July, 2006)

"This is the much-anticipated second edition of Mervyn Paterson's seminal volume of 1978, now with Teng-fong Wong as co-author. ... The material is presented in a way that should make it accessible to advanced students and non-specialists as well as to those currently active in the field. ... the reference list remains exceptionally comprehensive and therefore exceptionally useful... . It should provide the same essential reference for the future generation of rock physicists as the first edition did ... ." (P. G. Meredith, International Journal of Rock Mechanics & Mining Sciences, Vol. 45, 2008)

• Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

  Mervyn S. Paterson

• Department of Geosciences, ESS Building, State University of New York, Stony Brook, USA

  Teng-fong Wong

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