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Effects of Undulation and Stress on the Shear Mechanical Behavior of Saw-Toothed Discontinuities Under Unloading Normal Stress

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Abstract

The shear mechanical behavior of discontinuities under unloading conditions induced by intensive rock mass excavation differs from that under loading conditions. Therefore, the mechanical parameters obtained from the conventional direct shear test cannot effectively be used to assess the stability of excavated rock masses. To solve this problem, we conducted a series of experiments on saw-toothed discontinuities with different undulating angles and initial shear stresses under unloading normal stress with constant shear stress. The test results showed that the shear pattern transformed from climbing to climbing-gnawing and then to gnawing patterns as the undulating angle and initial shear stress increased. The shear stress remained stable with increasing shear displacement after instability in the climbing pattern, decreased with fluctuations in the climbing–gnawing pattern, and dropped steeply in the gnawing pattern. A negative linear correlation exists between the unloading magnitude and the initial shear stress. Unloading normal stress promoted deformation rebound and sawtooth damage, reducing the mobilizing shear strength. Modified Patton and Barton shear strength criteria considering the undulating angle, initial stress, and failure pattern under unloading normal stress were proposed.

Highlights

  • The shear mechanical behavior of saw-toothed discontinuities with different undulating angles and initial shear stresses under unloading normal stress with constant shear stress are investigated.

  • The failure pattern changes from the climbing pattern to the climbing–gnawing pattern and then to the gnawing pattern as the undulating angle and the initial shear stress increase.

  • Unloading promotes the increase in rebound deformation and the area of the damage zone, leading to the decrease in shear strength of saw-toothed discontinuities.

  • The modified Patton criterion and the Barton criterion are proposed for unloading normal stress considering the undulating angle, initial stress state, and failure pattern.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The present work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (no. 41972297) and the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (no. D2021202002).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Wuhan Polytechnic University, Wuhan, 430023, China

    Ying-Quan Guo

  2. College of Geology Engineering and Geomatics, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710054, China

    Da Huang

  3. School of Engineering, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, 3122, Australia

    Ying-Quan Guo & Ya-Li Li

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  1. Ying-Quan Guo
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  2. Da Huang
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  3. Ya-Li Li
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Correspondence to Da Huang.

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The manuscript “Effects of undulation and stress on the shear mechanical behavior of saw-toothed discontinuities under unloading normal stress” is submitted for possible publication in Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering. This manuscript has not been published previously and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere now (not submitted to more than one journal for simultaneous review). If accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form. This study is not split into several parts to increase the number of submissions. The proper acknowledgments to other works have been given. All authors appearing on the submission declare no conflict of interest in the submitted manuscripts and consent to submit. And they have contributed significantly to work submitted.

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Guo, YQ., Huang, D. & Li, YL. Effects of Undulation and Stress on the Shear Mechanical Behavior of Saw-Toothed Discontinuities Under Unloading Normal Stress. Rock Mech Rock Eng 57, 307–324 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-023-03580-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-023-03580-0

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