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A Study on Crack Damage Stress Thresholds of Different Rock Types Based on Uniaxial Compression Tests

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Abstract

When rock samples are loaded until macroscopic fractures develop, the failure process can be divided into several stages based on axial and lateral strain responses or the acoustic emission sequence during uniaxial compression tests. Several stress thresholds may be identified: the crack closure stress σ cc, crack initiation stress σ ci, crack damage stress σ cd, and uniaxial compressive strength σ ucs; these may be used as a warning indicator for rock rupture. We investigated the crack damage stress σ cd, its threshold, and a possible relationship between σ cd and the uniaxial compressive strength. The σ cd of different rock types were compiled from previous studies based on uniaxial compression tests. The results showed that the overall averages and standard deviations of σ cd /σ ucs for igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks were ~0.78 (±0.11), ~0.85 (±0.11), and ~0.73 (±0.18), respectively. There were no significant differences in σ cd /σ ucs between the different rock types, except that the sedimentary rock had a slightly larger standard deviation attributed to the variation of porosity in the samples, while the metamorphic rock had higher average σ cd /σ ucs resulting from the small statistical sample size. By excluding the higher-porosity (>10 %) rock samples, the averages and standard deviations of σ cd /σ ucs for igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks were ~0.78 (±0.09), ~0.85 (±0.09), and ~0.78 (±0.11), respectively. The results imply that the rock origin process (i.e., igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary) has a minimal effect on σ cd /σ ucs. The ratio σ cd/σ ucs could be an essential intrinsic property for low-porosity rocks, which could be used in rock engineering for predicting the failure process.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Science Foundation of Key Laboratory of Engineering Geomechanics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KLEG201106), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation funded project (No. 2012M520376), the National Program on Key Basic Research Project (Program 973, No. 2013CB036404), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41030750, 41302233 and 41102201). The authors would also like to express special thanks to the editor and anonymous reviewers for their suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Engineering Geomechanics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China

    Lei Xue & Siqing Qin

  2. School of Resources and Earth Science, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, 221116, China

    Qiang Sun

  3. Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100094, China

    Yuanyuan Wang

  4. Faculty of Engineering and Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, 53300, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Lee Min Lee

  5. State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Beijing, 100048, China

    Weichao Li

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  1. Lei Xue
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Correspondence to Lei Xue.

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Xue, L., Qin, S., Sun, Q. et al. A Study on Crack Damage Stress Thresholds of Different Rock Types Based on Uniaxial Compression Tests. Rock Mech Rock Eng 47, 1183–1195 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-013-0479-3

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