Experimental investigation of creep behavior of clastic rock in Xiangjiaba Hydropower Project

There are many fracture zones crossing the dam foundation of the Xiangjiaba Hydropower Project in southwestern China. Clastic rock is the main media of the fracture zone and has poor physical and mechanical properties. In order to investigate the creep behavior of clastic rock, triaxial creep tests were conducted using a rock servo-controlling rheological testing machine. The results show that the creep behavior of clastic rock is significant at a high level of deviatoric stress, and less time-dependent deformation occurs at high confining pressure. Based on the creep test results, the relationship between axial strain and time under different confining pressures was investigated, and the relationship between axial strain rate and deviatoric stress was also discussed. The strain rate increases rapidly, and the rock sample fails eventually under high deviatoric stress. Moreover, the creep failure mechanism under different confining pressures was analyzed. The main failure mechanism of clastic rock is plastic shear, accompanied by a significant compression and ductile dilatancy. On the other band, with the determined parameters, the Burgers creep model was used to fit the creep curves. The results indicate that the Burgers model can exactly describe the creep behavior of clastic rock in the Xiangjiaba Hydropower Project.

Experimental study and modeling of hydromechanical behavior of concrete fracture

In this study, the hydromechanical behavior of a concrete fracture under coupled compressive and shear stresses was investigated. A special experimental device was designed to create a planar fracture in a cylindrical sample and to carry out different kinds of hydromechanical tests on the fracture. Four series of laboratory tests were performed on an ordinary concrete sample. Hydrostatic compression tests were first conducted to characterize the normal compressibility of the fracture. In the second series, direct shear tests were conducted on the fracture under different normal stresses. The maximal shear stress of the fracture was determined as a function of the normal stress. In the third series, fluid flow tests were carried out in view of characterizing the overall hydraulic conductivity of the fracture as a function of its opening and closure. Shear tests with a constant fluid pressure were finally performed to investigate the influence of fluid pressure on the deformation behavior of concrete fractures. Based on the experimental investigation, an elastoplastic model is proposed. This model takes into account the nonlinear elastic behavior of a fracture under normal compression and the plastic deformation and failure due to shear stress. The model was coupled with the classical Darcy's law to describe the fluid flow along the fracture by considering the variation of permeability with fracture aperture. Numerical results agree with experimental data from various laboratory tests.

Elastoplastic cup model for cement-based materials

Based on experimental data obtained from triaxial tests and a hydrostatic test, a cup model was formulated. Two plastic mechanisms, respectively a deviatoric shearing and a pore collapse, are taken into account. This model also considers the influence of confining pressure. In this paper, the calibration of the model is detailed and numerical simulations of the main mechanical behavior of cement paste over a large range of stress are described, showing good agreement with experimental results. The ease study shows that this cup model has extensive applicability for cement-based materials and other quasi-brittle and high-porosity materials in a complex stress state.