Effects of thawing-induced softening on fracture behaviors of frozen rock

Due to the presence of ice and unfrozen water in pores of frozen rock,the rock fracture behaviors are susceptible to temperature.In this study,the potential thawing-induced softening effects on the fracture behaviors of frozen rock is evaluated by testing the tension fracture toughness(KIC)of frozen rock at different temperatures(i.e.-20℃,-15℃,-12℃,-10℃,-8℃,-6℃,-4℃,-2℃,and 0℃).Acoustic emission(AE)and digital image correlation(DIC)methods are utilized to analyze the microcrack propagation during fracturing.The melting of pore ice is measured using nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)method.The results indicate that:(1)The KIC of frozen rock decreases moderately between-20℃ and-4℃,and rapidly between-4℃ and 0℃.(2)At-20℃ to-4℃,the fracturing process,deduced from the DIC results at the notch tip,exhibits three stages:elastic deformation,microcrack propagation and microcrack coalescence.However,at-4℃e0℃,only the latter two stages are observed.(3)At-4℃e0℃,the AE activities during fracturing are less than that at-20℃ to-4℃,while more small events are reported.(4)The NMR results demonstrate a reverse variation trend in pore ice content with increasing temperature,that is,a moderate decrease is followed by a sharp decrease and-4℃ is exactly the critical temperature.Next,we interpret the thawing-induced softening effect by linking the evolution in microscopic structure of frozen rock with its macroscopic fracture behaviors as follow:from-20℃ to-4℃,the thickening of the unfrozen water film diminishes the cementation strength between ice and rock skeleton,leading to the decrease in fracture parameters.From-4℃ to 0℃,the cementation effect of ice almost vanishes,and the filling effect of pore ice is reduced significantly,which facilitates microcrack propagation and thus the easier fracture of frozen rocks.

Displacement-based back analysis of mitigating the effects of displacement loss in underground engineering

Displacement-monitoring-based back analysis is a popular method for geomechanical parameter estimation.However,due to the delayed installation of multi-point extensometers,the monitoring curve is only a part of the overall one,leading to displacement loss.Besides,the monitoring and construction time on the monitoring curve is difficult to determine.In the literature,the final displacement was selected for the back analysis,which could induce unreliable results.In this paper,a displacement-based back analysis method to mitigate the influence of displacement loss is developed.A robust hybrid optimization algorithm is proposed as a substitute for time-consuming numerical simulation.It integrates the strengths of the nonlinear mapping and prediction capability of the support vector machine(SVM)algorithm,the global searching and optimization characteristics of the optimized particle swarm optimization(OPSO)algorithm,and the nonlinear numerical simulation capability of ABAQUS.To avoid being trapped in the local optimum and to improve the efficiency of optimization,the standard PSO algorithm is improved and is compared with other three algorithms(genetic algorithm(GA),simulated annealing(SA),and standard PSO).The results indicate the superiority of OPSO algorithm.Finally,the hybrid optimization algorithm is applied to an engineering project.The back-analyzed parameters are submitted to numerical analysis,and comparison between the calculated and monitoring displacement curve shows that this hybrid algorithm can offer a reasonable reference for geomechanical parameters estimation.

Revisiting the methods for gas permeability measurement in tight porous medium

Permeability is a key parameter to describe fluid transport properties of porous medium; however, the permeability measurement is extremely difficult for tight porous medium, e.g. fine-grained rock or dense soil. In this paper, three methods for gas permeability measurement, i.e. steady state method, pulse decay method(PDM) and pressure oscillation method(POM), are first reviewed and then their advantages and drawbacks are discussed. Both analytical and numerical solutions of gas permeability are presented for the tight porous medium. The results show that the analytical method is relatively simple but only valid under certain conditions, whilst the numerical method is more robust and generic, which can take into account several factors such as porosity, saturation, gas leakage, and unconventional boundary conditions. The influence of the effective porosity on the permeability determination is further analyzed using the proposed numerical method. In this study, new pressure data interpretation procedures for PDM and POM are proposed, and the obtained results can serve as a guidance to define a proper method for permeability measurement of the tight porous medium.

Lateral compression and energy absorption of foamed concrete-filled polyethylene circular pipe as yielding layer for high geo-stress soft rock tunnels

Foamed concrete as energy absorption material for high geo-stress soft rock tunnels has been proven to be feasible due to its high compressibility and lightweight.However,the lengthy curing and defoaming problems caused by the cast-in-place method of large-volume foamed concrete remain unsolved.In this study,we propose a novel energy absorber composed of foamed concrete-filled polyethylene(FC-PE)pipe and analyze its deformation and energy absorption capacity via quasi-static lateral compression experiments.Results show that FC-PE pipes exhibit typical three-stage deformation characteristics,comprising the elastic stage,the plastic plateau,and the densification stage.Furthermore,the plateau stress,energy absorption,and specific energy absorption of the specimens are 0.81–1.91 MPa,164–533 J,and 1.4–3.6 J/g,respectively.As the density of the foamed concrete increases,the plateau stress and energy absorption increase significantly.Conversely,the length of the plastic plateau and energy absorption efficiency decrease.Moreover,based on the vertical slice method,progressive compression of core material,and the 6 plastic hinges deformation mechanism of the pipe wall,a theoretical calculation method for effective energy absorption is established and achieves good agreement with experimental results,which is beneficial to the optimization of the composite structure.

A model of unfrozen water content in rock during freezing and thawing with experimental validation by nuclear magnetic resonance

The unfrozen water content of rock during freezing and thawing has an important influence on its physical and mechanical properties.This study presented a model for calculating the unfrozen water content of rock during freezing and thawing process,considering the influence of unfrozen water film and rock pore structure,which can reflect the hysteresis and super-cooling effects.The pore size distribution cu rves of red sandsto ne and its unfrozen water conte nt under different temperatures during the freezing and thawing process were measured using nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR) to validate the proposed model.Comparison between the experimental and calculated results indicated that the theoretical model accu rately reflected the water content change law of red sandstone during the freezing and thawing process.Furthermore,the influences of Hamaker constant and surface relaxation parameter on the model results were examined.The results showed that the appropriate magnitude order of Hamaker constant for the red sandstone was 10J to 10J;and when the relaxation parameter of the rock surface was within 25-30 μm/ms,the calculated unfrozen water content using the proposed model was consistent with the experimental value.

Photo-induced surface frustrated Lewis pairs for promoted photocatalytic decomposition of perfluorooctanoic acid

Heterogeneous photocatalysis has gained substantial research interest in treating per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances(PFAS)-contaminated water.However,sluggish degradation kinetics and low defluorination efficiency compromise their practical applications.Here,we report a superior photocatalyst,defected Bi_(3)O(OH)(PO_(4))_(2),which could effectively degrade typical PFAS,perfluorooctanoic acid(PFOA),with high defluorination efficiency.The UV light irradiation could in situ generate oxygen vacancies on Bi_(3)O(OH)(PO_(4))_(2) through oxidation of the lattice hydroxyls,which further promotes the formation of Lewis acidic coordinately unsaturated bismuth sites.Then,the Lewis acidic sites couple with the proximal surface hydroxyls to constitute the surface frustrated Lewis pairs(SFLPs).With the in-depth spectroscopic analysis,we revealed that the photo-induced SFLPs act as collection centers to effectively adsorb PFOA and endow accessible pathways to transfer photogenerated holes to PFOA rapidly.Consequently,activation of the terminal carboxyl,a ratelimiting step for PFOA decomposition,could be easily achieved over the defected Bi_(3)O(OH)(PO_(4))_(2) photocatalyst.These results suggest that SFLPs exhibit great potential in developing highly efficient photocatalysts to degrade persistent organic pollutants.

Estimation of tunnel axial orientation in the interlayered rock mass using a comprehensive algorithm

The axial selection of tunnels constructed in the interlayered soft-hard rock mass affects the stability and safety during construction.Previous optimization is primarily based on experience or comparison and selection of alternative values under specific geological conditions.In this work,an intelligent optimization framework has been proposed by combining numerical analysis,machine learning(ML)and optimization algorithm.An automatic and intelligent numerical analysis process was proposed and coded to reduce redundant manual intervention.The conventional optimization algorithm was developed from two aspects and applied to the hyperparameters estimation of the support vector machine(SVM)model and the axial orientation optimization of the tunnel.Finally,the comprehensive framework was applied to a numerical case study,and the results were compared with those of other studies.The results of this study indicate that the determination coefficients between the predicted and the numerical stability evaluation indices(STIs)on the training and testing datasets are 0.998 and 0.997,respectively.For a given geological condition,the STI that changes with the axial orientation shows the trend of first decreasing and then increasing,and the optimal tunnel axial orientation is estimated to be 87
.This method provides an alternative and quick approach to the overall design of the tunnels.

Reinventing MoS2 Co-catalytic Fenton reaction:Oxygen-incorporation mediating surface superoxide radical generation

To better understand the mechanisms of hydrogen peroxide(H_(2)O_(2))’s decomposition and reactive oxygen species(ROS)’s formation on the catalyst’s surface is always a critical issue for the environmental application of Fenton/Fenton-like reaction.We here report a new approach to activate H_(2)O_(2) in a co-catalytic Fenton system with oxygen incorporated MoS2,namely MoS_(2−x) O_(x) nanosheets.The MoS_(2−x) O_(x) nanosheets assisted co-catalytic Fenton system exhibited superior degradation activity of emerging antibiotic contaminants(e.g.,sulfamethoxazole).Combining density functional theory(DFT)calculation and experimental investigation,we demonstrated that oxygen incorporation could improve the intrinsic conductivity of MoS_(2−x) O_(x) nanosheets and accelerate surface/interfacial charge transfer,which further leads to the efficacious activation of H_(2)O_(2).Moreover,by tuning the oxygen proportion in MoS_(2−x) O_(x) nanosheets,we are able to modulate the generation of ROS and further direct the oriented-conversion of H_(2)O_(2) to surface-bounded superoxide radical(·O_(2−surface)).It sheds light on the generation and transformation of ROS in the engineered system(e.g.,Fenton,Fenton-like reaction)for efficient degradation of persistent pollutants.

Direct conversion of methane to methanol over Cu exchanged mordenite:Effect of counter ions

Direct conversion of methane(CH4)to methanol(DMTM)is a promising,but very challenging process for the utilization of abundant CH4 as a low carbon resource.In this context,Cu loaded zeolites,mordenite(MOR)in particular,were recognized as the most effective system to perform DMTM.In this work,different Cu salts were used to exchange with MOR,by which the effect of counter ions on the catalytic performance towards DMTM was investigated.The prepared catalysts were characterized and evaluated systematically.It was found that the counter ions affected the speciation of Cu sites,probably due to their capability in extraction of protons from MOR and the influence on the hydrolysis state of the Cu2+in aqueous solution.These behaviors adjusted the association between Cu2+and the exchangeable protons in MOR.As a result,varied DMTM performance was observed.Among the used Cu salts,Cu(CH3COO)2 exchanged MOR showed the highest performance,achieving stable CH3 OH yield of 117±28μmol/g in 5 consecutive cycles,these values are among the highest for Cu loaded MOR zeolites in open publications.