Intermittent disturbance mechanical behavior and fractional deterioration mechanical model of rock under complex true triaxial stress paths

Mechanical excavation,blasting,adjacent rockburst and fracture slip that occur during mining excavation impose dynamic loads on the rock mass,leading to further fracture of damaged surrounding rock in three-dimensional high-stress and even causing disasters.Therefore,a novel complex true triaxial static-dynamic combined loading method reflecting underground excavation damage and then frequent intermittent disturbance failure is proposed.True triaxial static compression and intermittent disturbance tests are carried out on monzogabbro.The effects of intermediate principal stress and amplitude on the strength characteristics,deformation characteristics,failure characteristics,and precursors of monzogabbro are analyzed,intermediate principal stress and amplitude increase monzogabbro strength and tensile fracture mechanism.Rapid increases in microseismic parameters during rock loading can be precursors for intermittent rock disturbance.Based on the experimental result,the new damage fractional elements and method with considering crack initiation stress and crack unstable stress as initiation and acceleration condition of intermittent disturbance irreversible deformation are proposed.A novel three-dimensional disturbance fractional deterioration model considering the intermediate principal stress effect and intermittent disturbance damage effect is established,and the model predicted results align well with the experimental results.The sensitivity of stress states and model parameters is further explored,and the intermittent disturbance behaviors at different f are predicted.This study provides valuable theoretical bases for the stability analysis of deep mining engineering under dynamic loads.

Mechanical responses of anchoring structure under triaxial cyclic loading

Dynamic load on anchoring structures(AS)within deep roadways can result in cumulative damage and failure.This study develops an experimental device designed to test AS under triaxial loads.The device enables the investigation of the mechanical response,failure mode,instability assessment criteria,and anchorage effect of AS subjected to combined cyclic dynamic-static triaxial stress paths.The results show that the peak bearing strength is positively correlated with the anchoring matrix strength,anchorage length,and edgewise compressive strength.The bearing capacity decreases significantly when the anchorage direction is severely inclined.The free face failure modes are typically transverse cracking,concave fracturing,V-shaped slipping and detachment,and spallation detachment.Besides,when the anchoring matrix strength and the anchorage length decrease while the edgewise compressive strength,loading rate,and anchorage inclination angle increase,the failure intensity rises.Instability is determined by a negative tangent modulus of the displacement-strength curve or the continued deformation increase against the general downward trend.Under cyclic loads,the driving force that breaks the rock mass along the normal vector and the rigidity of the AS are the two factors that determine roadway stability.Finally,a control measure for surrounding rock stability is proposed to reduce the internal driving force via a pressure relief method and improve the rigidity of the AS by full-length anchorage and grouting modification.

Failure characterization of fully grouted rock bolts under triaxial testing

Confining stresses serve as a pivotal determinant in shaping the behavior of grouted rock bolts.Nonetheless,prior investigations have oversimplified the three-dimensional stress state,primarily assuming hydrostatic stress conditions.Under these conditions,it is assumed that the intermediate principal stress(σ_(2))equals the minimum principal stress(σ_(3)).This assumption overlooks the potential variations in magnitudes of in situ stress conditions along all three directions near an underground opening where a rock bolt is installed.In this study,a series of push tests was meticulously conducted under triaxial conditions.These tests involved applying non-uniform confining stresses(σ_(2)≠σ_(3))to cubic specimens,aiming to unveil the previously overlooked influence of intermediate principal stresses on the strength properties of rock bolts.The results show that as the confining stresses increase from zero to higher levels,the pre-failure behavior changes from linear to nonlinear forms,resulting in an increase in initial stiffness from 2.08 kN/mm to 32.51 kN/mm.The load-displacement curves further illuminate distinct post-failure behavior at elevated levels of confining stresses,characterized by enhanced stiffness.Notably,the peak load capacity ranged from 27.9 kN to 46.5 kN as confining stresses advanced from σ_(2)=σ_(3)=0 to σ_(2)=20 MPa and σ_(3)=10 MPa.Additionally,the outcomes highlight an influence of confining stress on the lateral deformation of samples.Lower levels of confinement prompt overall dilation in lateral deformation,while higher confinements maintain a state of shrinkage.Furthermore,diverse failure modes have been identified,intricately tied to the arrangement of confining stresses.Lower confinements tend to induce a splitting mode of failure,whereas higher loads bring about a shift towards a pure interfacial shear-off and shear-crushed failure mechanism.

Damage evolution of rock-encased-backfill structure under stepwise cyclic triaxial loading

Rock-encased-backfill(RB)structures are common in underground mining,for example in the cut-andfill and stoping methods.To understand the effects of cyclic excavation and blasting activities on the damage of these RB structures,a series of triaxial stepwise-increasing-amplitude cyclic loading experiments was conducted with cylindrical RB specimens(rock on outside,backfill on inside)with different volume fractions of rock(VF=0.48,0.61,0.73,and 0.84),confining pressures(0,6,9,and 12 MPa),and cyclic loading rates(200,300,400,and 500 N/s).The damage evolution and meso-crack formation during the cyclic tests were analyzed with results from stress-strain hysteresis loops,acoustic emission events,and post-failure X-ray 3D fracture morphology.The results showed significant differences between cyclic and monotonic loadings of RB specimens,particularly with regard to the generation of shear microcracks,the development of stress memory and strain hardening,and the contact forces and associated friction that develops along the rock-backfill interface.One important finding is that as a function of the number of cycles,the elastic strain increases linearly and the dissipated energy increases exponentially.Also,compared with monotonic loading,the cyclic strain hardening characteristics are more sensitive to rising confining pressures during the initial compaction stage.Another finding is that compared with monotonic loading,more shear microcracks are generated during every reloading stage,but these microcracks tend to be dispersed and lessen the likelihood of large shear fracture formation.The transition from elastic to plastic behavior varies depending on the parameters of each test(confinement,volume fraction,and cyclic rate),and an interesting finding was that the transformation to plastic behavior is significantly lower under the conditions of 0.73 rock volume fraction,400 N/s cyclic loading rate,and 9 MPa confinement.All the findings have important practical implications on the ability of backfill to support underground excavations.

Microdynamic mechanical properties and fracture evolution mechanism of monzogabbro with a true triaxial multilevel disturbance method

The far-field microdynamic disturbance caused by the excavation of deep mineral resources and underground engineering can induce surrounding rock damage in high-stress conditions and even lead to disasters.However,the mechanical properties and damage/fracture evolution mechanisms of deep rock induced by microdynamic disturbance under three-dimensional stress states are unclear.Therefore,a true triaxial multilevel disturbance test method is proposed,which can completely simulate natural geostress,excavation stress redistribution(such as stress unloading,concentration and rotation),and subsequently the microdynamic disturbance triggering damaged rock failure.Based on a dynamic true triaxial test platform,true triaxial microdynamic disturbance tests under different frequency and amplitudes were carried out on monzogabbro.The results show that increasing amplitude or decreasing frequency diminishes the failure strength of monzogabbro.Deformation modulus gradually decreases during disturbance failure.As frequency and amplitude increase,the degradation rate of deformation modulus decreases slightly,disturbance dissipated energy increases significantly,and disturbance deformation anisotropy strengthens obviously.A damage model has been proposed to quantitatively characterize the disturbance-induced damage evolution at different frequency and amplitude under true triaxial stress.Before disturbance failure,the micro-tensile crack mechanism is dominant,and the micro-shear crack mechanism increases significantly at failure.With the increase of amplitude and frequency,the micro-shear crack mechanism increases.When approaching disturbance failure,the acoustic emission fractal dimension changes from a stable value to local large oscillation,and finally increases sharply to a high value at failure.Finally,the disturbance-induced failure mechanism of surrounding rock in deep engineering is clearly elucidated.

Anisotropic strength,deformation and failure of gneiss granite under high stress and temperature coupled true triaxial compression

The anisotropic mechanical behavior of rocks under high-stress and high-temperature coupled conditions is crucial for analyzing the stability of surrounding rocks in deep underground engineering.This paper is devoted to studying the anisotropic strength,deformation and failure behavior of gneiss granite from the deep boreholes of a railway tunnel that suffers from high tectonic stress and ground temperature in the eastern tectonic knot in the Tibet Plateau.High-temperature true triaxial compression tests are performed on the samples using a self-developed testing device with five different loading directions and three temperature values that are representative of the geological conditions of the deep underground tunnels in the region.Effect of temperature and loading direction on the strength,elastic modulus,Poisson’s ratio,and failure mode are analyzed.The method for quantitative identification of anisotropic failure is also proposed.The anisotropic mechanical behaviors of the gneiss granite are very sensitive to the changes in loading direction and temperature under true triaxial compression,and the high temperature seems to weaken the inherent anisotropy and stress-induced deformation anisotropy.The strength and deformation show obvious thermal degradation at 200℃due to the weakening of friction between failure surfaces and the transition of the failure pattern in rock grains.In the range of 25℃ 200℃,the failure is mainly governed by the loading direction due to the inherent anisotropy.This study is helpful to the in-depth understanding of the thermal-mechanical behavior of anisotropic rocks in deep underground projects.

Theoretical insights into thermal transport and structural stability mechanisms of triaxial compressed methane hydrate

The heat transfer and stability of methane hydrate in reservoirs have a direct impact on the drilling and production efficiency of hydrate resources,especially in complex stress environments caused by formation subsidence.In this study,we investigated the thermal transport and structural stability of methane hydrate under triaxial compression using molecular dynamics simulations.The results suggest that the thermal conductivity of methane hydrate increases with increasing compression strain.Two phonon transport mechanisms were identified as factors enhancing thermal conductivity.At low compressive strains,a low-frequency phonon transport channel was established due to the overlap of phonon vibration peaks between methane and water molecules.At high compressive strains,the filling of larger phonon bandgaps facilitated the opening of more phonon transport channels.Additionally,we found that a strain of0.04 is a watershed point,where methane hydrate transitions from stable to unstable.Furthermore,a strain of0.06 marks the threshold at which the diffusion capacities of methane and water molecules are at their peaks.At a higher strain of0.08,the increased volume compression reduces the available space,limiting the diffusion ability of water and methane molecules within the hydrate.The synergistic effect of the strong diffusion ability and high probability of collision between atoms increases the thermal conductivity of hydrates during the unstable period compared to the stable period.Our findings offer valuable theoretical insights into the thermal conductivity and stability of methane hydrates in reservoir stress environments.

Effect of fractures on mechanical behavior of sand powder 3D printing rock analogue under triaxial compression

In practical engineering applications,rock mass are often found to be subjected to a triaxial stress state.Concurrently,defects like joints and fractures have a notable impact on the mechanical behavior of rock mass.Such defects are identified as crucial contributors to the failure and instability of the surrounding rock,subsequently impacting the engineering stability.The study aimed to investigate the impact of fracture geometry and confining pressure on the deformation,failure characteristics,and strength of specimens using sand powder 3D printing technology and conventional triaxial compression tests.The results indicate that the number of fractures present considerably influences the peak strength,axial peak strain and elastic modulus of the specimens.Confining pressure is an important factor affecting the failure pattern of the specimen,under which the specimen is more prone to shear failure,but the initiation,expansion and penetration processes of secondary cracks in different fracture specimens are different.This study confirmed the feasibility of using sand powder 3D printing specimens as soft rock analogs for triaxial compression research.The insights from this research are deemed essential for a deeper understanding of the mechanical behavior of fractured surrounding rocks when under triaxial stress state.

Effects of pressure relief holes on coal burst:Insights from true-triaxial unloading tests

Drilling pressure relief is one of the methods to reduce the risk of coal bursts in deep mines.However,the effect of the drill hole orientations has not been studied well enough to understand their impact on the burst failure mechanism.In this study,we investigated two designs of drill hole orientations.The first design includes drill holes located on the upper free face of the rectangular samples and labelled as upper hole(UH)and centre hole(CH)e the long axes of the drill holes are aligned with minor principal stress,s3,direction.The second design includes drill holes at the top(TH)and the side(SH)of the rectangular samples in which the long axes of the drill holes are aligned with the maximum,s1,and intermediate principal stress,s2,directions,respectively.The coal samples with the proposed drill hole orientations were subjected to the true-triaxial unloading coal burst tests.The results show that the drill holes reduce the risk of coal bursts.However,we found that the intensity of coal burst was significantly reduced with the SH-type,followed by the CH-types.We also observed that the coal burst intensity is reduced better for the CH,UH,TH,and SH-type drilling patterns.However,it was found that the orientations of drill holes have little influence on the failure mode(splitting).The acoustic emission(AE)activities for coal with drill holes noticeably decreased,especially for the UH and CH layouts.The drill holes reduced the upper limit of the AE entropy(chaos of microcracks generation).However,regarding reducing the coal burst risk,the TH and SH are less effective than UH and CH.

Shear failure behaviors and degradation mechanical model of rockmass under true triaxial multi-level loading and unloading shear tests

The redistribution of three-dimensional(3D)geostress during underground tunnel excavation can easily induce to shear failure along rockmass structural plane,potentially resulting in engineering disasters.However,the current understanding of rockmass shear behavior is mainly based on shear tests under2D stress without lateral stress,the shear fracture under 3D stress is unclear,and the relevant 3D shear fracture theory research is deficient.Therefore,this study conducted true triaxial cyclic loading and unloading shear tests on intact and bedded limestone under different normal stress σ_(n) and lateral stressσ_(p)to investigate the shear strength,deformation,and failure characteristics.The results indicate that under differentσ_(n)and σ_(p),the stress–strain hysteresis loop area gradually increases from nearly zero in the pre-peak stage,becomes most significant in the post-peak stage,and then becomes very small in the residual stage as the number of shear test cycles increases.The shear peak strength and failure surface roughness almost linearly increase with the increase inσ_(n),while they first increase and then gradually decrease asσ_(p)increases,with the maximum increases of 12.9%for strength and 15.1%for roughness.The shear residual strength almost linearly increases withσ_(n),but shows no significant change withσ_(p).Based on the acoustic emission characteristic parameters during the test process,the shear fracture process and microscopic failure mechanism were analyzed.As the shear stressτincreases,the acoustic emission activity,main frequency,and amplitude gradually increase,showing a significant rise during the cycle near the peak strength,while remaining almost unchanged in the residual stage.The true triaxial shear fracture process presents tensile-shear mixture failure characteristics dominated by microscopic tensile failure.Based on the test results,a 3D shear strength criterion considering the lateral stress effect was proposed,and the determination methods and evolution of the shear modulus G,cohesion c_(jp),friction angleφ_(jp),and dilation angleψjpduring rockmass shear fracture process were studied.Under differentσ_(n)andσ_(p),G first rapidly decreases and then tends to stabilize;cjp,φ_(jp),andψjpfirst increase rapidly to the maximum value,then decrease slowly,and finally remain basically unchanged.A 3D shear mechanics model considering the effects of lateral stress and shear parameter degradation was further established,and a corresponding numerical calculation program was developed based on3D discrete element software.The proposed model effectively simulates the shear failure evolution process of rockmass under true triaxial shear test,and is further applied to successfully reveal the failure characteristics of surrounding rocks with structural planes under different combinations of tunnel axis and geostress direction.

Experimental and numerical study on dynamic mechanical behaviors of shale under true triaxial compression at high strain rate

High-energy gas fracturing of shale is a novel,high efficacy and eco-friendly mining technique,which is a typical dynamic perturbing behavior.To effectively extract shale gas,it is important to understand the dynamic mechanical properties of shale.Dynamic experiments on shale subjected to true triaxial compression at different strain rates are first conducted in this research.The dynamic stress-strain curves,peak strain,peak stress and failure modes of shale are investigated.The results of the study indicate that the intermediate principal stress and the minor principal stress have the significant influence on the dynamic mechanical behaviors,although this effect decreases as the strain rate increases.The characteristics of compression-shear failure primarily occur in shale subjected to triaxial compression at high strain rates,which distinguishes it from the fragmentation characteristics observed in shale under dynamic uniaxial compression.Additionally,a numerical three-dimensional Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar(3D-SHPB),which is established by coupling PFC3D and FLAC3D methods,is validated to replicate the laboratory characteristics of shale.The dynamic mechanical characteristics of shale subjected to different confining stresses are systematically investigated by the coupling PFC3D and FLAC3D method.The numerical results are in good agreement with the experimental data.

True triaxial behavior of sandy soils under both drained and undrained conditions:A discrete element perspective

An advanced discrete element servomechanism that can simultaneously and independently control the evolution equations of six stress and strain components without introducing severe stress concentration is implemented.Such a comprehensive series of discrete element method simulations of both drained and undrained behavior of transversely isotropic sandy soils are successfully conducted in the true triaxial setting.During the simulation process,the evolution patterns of the load-bearing structure of the granular specimen are tracked using a contact-normal-based fabric tensor.The simulation results show that sandy soils exhibit more significant non-coaxiality between the loading direction and the major principal direction of the fabric tensor under extension than under compression.Therefore,the fabric of the sandy soils under extension has a stronger tendency to evolve toward the loading direction than that under compression,causing a more significant disturbance to the load-bearing structure.Consequently,compared with the extension loading condition,the transversely isotropic specimen under compression exhibits a higher shear strength and stronger dilatancy under drained conditions and a stronger liquefaction resistance under undrained conditions.

Failure properties of rocks in true triaxial unloading compressive test

Slabbing failure often occurs in the surround rock near a deep underground excavation. The mechanism of slabbing failure is still unclear. In order to reveal the influence of the intermediate principal stress （σ2） on slabbing failure, true triaxial unloading compressive test was carried out based on the stress path of the underground engineering excavation, i.e., unloading the minimum principal stress （σ3）, keeping σ2, increasing the maximum principal stress （σ1）. The initiation and the propagation of slabbing fracture in rock specimens were identified by examining the acoustic emission （AE） and the infrared radiation characterization. The test results show that the failure modes of the granite and red sandstone specimens are changed from shear to slabbing with the increase of σ2. The AE characteristic of rock specimen under low σ2 is swarm type which is the main shock type under high σ2. The infrared radiation properties of rock specimen under different σ2 are also different. The temperature change area is just along the shear fracture such as the uniaxial compression. With the increase of σ2, the temperature change area is planar of rock specimen which proofs that the failure mode of rock specimen turns into slabbing.

Full magnetic gradient tensor from triaxial aeromagnetic gradient measurements:Calculation and application

The full magnetic gradient tensor （MGT） refers to the spatial change rate of the three field components of the geomagnetic field vector along three mutually orthogonal axes. The tensor is of use to geological mapping, resources exploration, magnetic navigation, and others. However, it is very difficult to measure the full magnetic tensor gradient using existing engineering technology. We present a method to use triaxial aeromagnetic gradient measurements for deriving the full MGT. The method uses the triaxial gradient data and makes full use of the variation of the magnetic anomaly modulus in three dimensions to obtain a self-consistent magnetic tensor gradient. Numerical simulations show that the full MGT data obtained with the proposed method are of high precision and satisfy the requirements of data processing. We selected triaxial aeromagnetic gradient data from the Hebei Province for calculating the full MGT. Data processing shows that using triaxial tensor gradient data allows to take advantage of the spatial rate of change of the total field in three dimensions and suppresses part of the independent noise in the aeromagnetic gradient. The calculated tensor components have improved resolution, and the transformed full tensor gradient satisfies the requirement of geological mapping and interpretation.

Relationship between repeated triaxial test and Hamburg wheel tracking test on asphalt mixtures

Both the repeated triaxial test （RTT） and the Hamburg wheel tracking test （HWTT） are adopted to evaluate the high temperature performance of the stone mastic asphalt （SMA） and the mastic asphalt （MA）. The correlation of the permanent deformations of the MA and the correlation of the deformation developments of the SMA between the two tests are analyzed, respectively. Results show that both the two tests can effectively identify the high temperature performance of mixtures, and the correlation between the final results of the two tests as well as that between the deformation developments of the two tests are excellent with R20.9. In order to further prove the correlation, viscoelastic parameters estimated from the RTT results is used to simulate the rutting development in the HWTT slabs by the finite element method （FEM）. Results indicate that the correlation between the two tests is significant with errors less than 10%. It is suitable to predict the rutting development with the viscoelastic parameters obtained from the RTT.

Triaxial creep tests of weak sandstone from fracture zone of high dam foundation

The lithology of fracture zone which was developed at the dam foundation of a hydropower station is weak sandstone with poor integrity and pore cementation contact.Its creep properties have a significant impact on the deformation and stability of the dam.Based on the characteristics of loose organizational structure,high moisture content and poor mechanical properties,the triaxial compression tests and creep tests were carried out,respectively.The results show significant non-linear,low strength and no obvious strength peaks.Both axial and lateral strains are achieved more than 3%when the tests are failed.The weak sandstone has a significant creep property,but only transient and steady state appear under low stress.Increased stress causes creep intensified and lateral strain gradually exceeds axial strain.In the failure stage,it has characteristics of large axial plastic deformation,obvious volumetric ductility dilation and large steady creep rate.The accelerated creep appears shortly after transient loading under confining of pressures 1.0 MPa and 1.5 MPa.Therefore,an improved Burgers creep model considering the non-linear characteristics of weak sandstone is built based on hyperbolic equation and the creep parameters are identified.This model can well describe the creep properties of weak sandstone.

Investigation of the influence of intermediate principal stress on the dynamic responses of rocks subjected to true triaxial stress state

Precisely understanding the dynamic mechanical properties and failure modes of rocks subjected to true triaxial stress state(σ1>σ2>σ3,whereσ1,σ2,andσ3 are the major principal stress,intermediate principal stress,and minor principal stress,respectively)is essential to the safety of underground engineering.However,in the laboratory,it is difficult to maintain the constant true triaxial stress state of rocks during the dynamic testing process.Herein,a numerical servo triaxial Hopkinson bar(NSTHB)was developed to study the dynamic responses of rocks confronted with a true triaxial stress state,in which lateral stresses can maintain constant.The results indicate that the dynamic strength and elastic modulus of rocks increase with the rise of intermediate principal stressσ2,while the dynamic elastic modulus is independent of the dynamic strain rate.Simulated acoustic emission distributions indicate that the intermediate principal stressσ2 dramatically affects dynamic failure modes of triaxial confined rocks.Asσ2 increases,the failure pattern switches from a single diagonal shear zone into two parallel shear zones with a small slant.Moreover,a recent triaxial Hopkinson bar experimental system using three bar pairs is also numerically established,and the measuring discrepancies are identified between the two numerical bar systems.The proposed NSTHB system provides a controllable tool for studying the dynamic triaxial behavior of rocks.

Temperature-controlled triaxial compression/creep test device for thermodynamic properties of soft sedimentary rock and corresponding theoretical prediction

In deep geological disposal of high-level nuclear waste,one of the most important subjects is to estimate long-term stability and strength of host rock under high temperature conditions caused by radioactive decay of the waste.In this paper,some experimental researches on the thermo-mechanical characteristics of soft sedimentary rock have been presented.For this reason,a new temperature-controlled triaxial compression and creep test device,operated automatically by a computer-controlled system,whose control software has been developed by the authors,was developed to conduct the thermo-mechanical tests in different thermal loading paths,including an isothermal path.The new device is proved to be able to conduct typical thermo-mechanical element tests for soft rock.The test device and the related testing method were introduced in detail.Finally,some test results have been simulated with a thermo-elasto-viscoplastic model that was also developed by the authors.

Strength of Lightweight Concrete Under Triaxial Compression

The strength of lightweight concrete under triaxial compressive stress is studied experimentally with the concrete triaxial apparatus designed by the authors, and is compared with that of normal concrete under the same stress state. Ninety-five 100 mm cubes under twenty stress ratios are tested. As compared with normal concrete, it is found that not only the multiaxial compressive strength of lightweight concrete is small, but also the ratio of the multiaxial compressive strength to the uniaxial compressive strength is small. The influence of the intermediate principal stress on the multiaxial strength of lightweight concrete is discussed. The strength criteria which are expressed in the principal stresses and the octahedral stresses respectively are proposed.

Mechanical property of artificial methane hydrate under triaxial compression

Methane production from hydrate reservoir may induce seabed slide and deformation of the hydrate-bearing strata.The research on mechanical properties of methane hydrate is considered to be important for developing an efficient methane exploitation technology.In this paper,a triaxial test system containing a pressure crystal device was developed with the conditions to stabilize the hydrate.A series of triaxial shear tests were carried out on artificial methane hydrate specimen.In addition,mechanical characteristics of methane hydrate were studied with the strain rates of 0.1 and 1.0 mm/min,respectively,under the conditions of different temperatures（T =-5,-10,and-20 ℃） and confining pressures（P = 0,5,10,15,and 20 MPa）.The preliminary results show that when the confining pressure was less than 10 MPa,the increase of confining pressure leaded to the enhancement of shear strength.Furthermore,the decreasing temperature and the increasing strain rate both caused the increase in shear strength.