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Effects of high temperature on the mechanical behaviors of sandstone under true-triaxial unloading conditions

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Abstract

To investigate the influence of high-temperature treatment on the mechanical behaviors of sandstone under unloading conditions, a series of true-triaxial unloading tests with a stress path of loading σ1 and unloading σ3 were performed on thermally treated sandstone specimens. Before testing, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations and physical property analysis demonstrated that high-temperature treatment effectively weakens the density and P-wave velocity of the specimen, and the development of microcracks is increasingly evident as the temperature exceeds 350 °C. The results of unloading tests reveal that as the temperature increases, the peak strength first increases and then dramatically decreases, with a threshold temperature of 800 °C, while the peak strain exhibits a continuously increasing trend. The changes in stress σ3 and strain ε3 at the unloading stage substantially increase negatively with temperature. In addition, as the temperature increases, the conversion rates of U1, Ue and Up first increase and then decrease. The damage variable defined by strain energies at the peak stress point increases with the temperature. The dominant failure mode changes from shear fracture to tensile fracture as the temperature exceeds 650 °C. These results can provide some guidance for the design and construction of rock structures subjected to high temperature.

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Acknowledgements

The work was financially supported by the National Science and Technology Major Project (2016ZX05045001-005), the National Key Research and Development Plan (2017YFC0804202), National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.51704044), General Projects of Basic Science and Frontier Technology Research Projects of Chongqing Science and Technology Planning Project (No. cstc2017jcyjAX0264). The authors would like to acknowledge their financial contribution and convey their appreciation to these organizations for supporting this basic research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Coal Mine Disaster Dynamics and Control, School of Resources and Safety Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China

    Fan Xiao, Deyi Jiang, Fei Wu, Quanle Zou, Jie Chen, Bo Chen & Zhongguang Sun

  2. State Key Laboratory of the Gas Disaster Detecting, Preventing and Emergency Controlling, China Coal Technology and Engineering Group Chongqing Research Institute, Chongqing, 400039, China

    Zhongguang Sun

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  1. Fan Xiao
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  2. Deyi Jiang
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  4. Quanle Zou
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Correspondence to Deyi Jiang, Fei Wu or Quanle Zou.

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Xiao, F., Jiang, D., Wu, F. et al. Effects of high temperature on the mechanical behaviors of sandstone under true-triaxial unloading conditions. Bull Eng Geol Environ 80, 4587–4601 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-021-02205-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-021-02205-6

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