Research on the influence of contact surface constraint on mechanical properties of rock-concrete composite specimens under compressive loads

The contact form of rock-concrete has a crucial influence on the failure characteristics of the stability of rock-concrete engineering.To study the influence of contact surface on the mechanical properties of rock-concrete composite specimens under compressive loads,the two different contact forms of rock-concrete composite specimens are designed,the mechanical properties of these two different specimens are analyzed under triaxial compressive condition,and analysis comparison on the stress-strain curves and failure forms of the two specimens is carried out.The influence of contact surface constraint on the mechanical properties of rock-concrete composite specimens is obtained.Results show that the stress and strain of rock-concrete composite specimens with contact surface constraint are obviously higher than those without.Averagely,compared with composite specimens without the contact surface,the existence of contact surface constraint can increase the axial peak stress of composite specimens by 24%and the axial peak strain by 16%.According to the characteristics of the fracture surface,the theory of microcrack development is used to explain the contact surface constraint of rock-concrete composite specimens,which explains the difference of mechanical properties between the two rock-concrete composite specimens in the experiment.Research results cannot only enrich the research content of the mechanics of rock contact,but also can serve as a valuable reference for the understanding of the corresponding mechanics mechanism of other similar composite specimens.

Tensile strength and failure behavior of rock-mortar interfaces: Direct and indirect measurements

The tensile strength at the rock-concrete interface is one of the crucial factors controlling the failure mechanisms of structures,such as concrete gravity dams.Despite the critical importance of the failure mechanism and tensile strength of rock-concrete interfaces,understanding of these factors remains very limited.This study investigated the tensile strength and fracturing processes at rock-mortar interfaces subjected to direct and indirect tensile loadings.Digital image correlation(DIC)and acoustic emission(AE)techniques were used to monitor the failure mechanisms of specimens subjected to direct tension and indirect loading(Brazilian tests).The results indicated that the direct tensile strength of the rock-mortar specimens was lower than their indirect tensile strength,with a direct/indirect tensile strength ratio of 65%.DIC strain field data and moment tensor inversions(MTI)of AE events indicated that a significant number of shear microcracks occurred in the specimens subjected to the Brazilian test.The presence of these shear microcracks,which require more energy to break,resulted in a higher tensile strength during the Brazilian tests.In contrast,microcracks were predominantly tensile in specimens subjected to direct tension,leading to a lower tensile strength.Spatiotemporal monitoring of the cracking processes in the rock-mortar interfaces revealed that they show AE precursors before failure under the Brazilian test,whereas they show a minimal number of AE events before failure under direct tension.Due to different microcracking mechanisms,specimens tested under Brazilian tests showed lower roughness with flatter fracture surfaces than those tested under direct tension with jagged and rough fracture surfaces.The results of this study shed light on better understanding the micromechanics of damage in the rock-concrete interfaces for a safer design of engineering structures.