Anisotropic time-dependent behaviors of shale under direct shearing and associated empirical creep models

Understanding the anisotropic creep behaviors of shale under direct shearing is a challenging issue.In this context,we conducted shear-creep and steady-creep tests on shale with five bedding orientations (i.e.0°,30°,45°,60°,and 90°),under multiple levels of direct shearing for the first time.The results show that the anisotropic creep of shale exhibits a significant stress-dependent behavior.Under a low shear stress,the creep compliance of shale increases linearly with the logarithm of time at all bedding orientations,and the increase depends on the bedding orientation and creep time.Under high shear stress conditions,the creep compliance of shale is minimal when the bedding orientation is 0°,and the steady-creep rate of shale increases significantly with increasing bedding orientations of 30°,45°,60°,and 90°.The stress-strain values corresponding to the inception of the accelerated creep stage show an increasing and then decreasing trend with the bedding orientation.A semilogarithmic model that could reflect the stress dependence of the steady-creep rate while considering the hardening and damage process is proposed.The model minimizes the deviation of the calculated steady-state creep rate from the observed value and reveals the behavior of the bedding orientation's influence on the steady-creep rate.The applicability of the five classical empirical creep models is quantitatively evaluated.It shows that the logarithmic model can well explain the experimental creep strain and creep rate,and it can accurately predict long-term shear creep deformation.Based on an improved logarithmic model,the variations in creep parameters with shear stress and bedding orientations are discussed.With abovementioned findings,a mathematical method for constructing an anisotropic shear creep model of shale is proposed,which can characterize the nonlinear dependence of the anisotropic shear creep behavior of shale on the bedding orientation.

Numerical analysis of loess and weak intercalated layer failure behavior under direct shearing and cyclic loading

The mechanical behavior of the joints inside a loess layer is greatly important in weak intercalation studies owing to its involvement in a wide range of landslides in the loess region in China.The shear behavior of the joints in the loess stratum during direct shear and cyclic loadings was investigated using the PFC2D discrete element software.Loess mudstone and mudstone with weak intercalated layer materials were subjected to direct testing,and cyclic shear tests were conducted with consideration to the influence of normal stress and shear velocity.The macroscopic properties and damage patterns were obtained for six numerical configurations;namely,loess-weathered mudstone with 0°,10°,and-10°joints and weathered mudstone with 0°,10°,and-10°weak intercalated layers.The numerical test results revealed that,in the direct shear tests,the shear stress and shear displacement of the samples increased with the normal stress.In the cyclic shear tests with a total cycle number N=20,the shear stress-shear strain curve of the six different configurations exhibited a hysteresis loop.The numerical tests also revealed that,under cyclic shear,the normal stress and shear velocity affected the shear strength.The degree of damage increased as the shear velocity decreased from 0.1 mm/s to 0.005 mm/s for all six numerical configurations.Compared with the damage pattern of the direct shear tests,the damage of the cyclic shear tests mainly comprised shear cracks and fractures,some shaking consolidation settlement and fewer shear strain occurred around the joints.In the direct shear tests,more compression cracks and fractures occurred in the samples.The damage mainly developed along the joints,and shearing-off damage occurred.The results obtained by this study further elucidate the failure mechanism and microscopic damage response of the joints in the loess stratum in Northwest China.

A statistical damage-based constitutive model for shearing of rock joints in brittle drop mode

Some rock joints exhibit significant brittleness,characterized by a sharp decrease in shear stress upon reaching the peak strength.However,existing models often fail to accurately represent this behavior and are encumbered by numerous parameters lacking clear mechanical significance.This study presents a new statistical damage constitutive model rooted in both damage mechanics and statistics,containing only three model parameters.The proposed model encompasses all stages of joint shearing,including the compaction stage,linear stage,plastic yielding stage,drop stage,strain softening stage,and residual strength stage.To derive the analytical expression of the constitutive model,three boundary conditions are introduced.Experimental data from both natural and artificial rock joints is utilized to validate the model,resulting in average absolute relative errors ranging from 3%to 8%.Moreover,a comparative analysis with established models illustrates that the proposed model captures stress drop and post-peak strain softening more effectively,with model parameters possessing clearer mechanical interpretations.Furthermore,parameter analysis is conducted to investigate the impacts of model parameters on the curves and unveil the relationship between these parameters and the mechanical properties of rock joints.Importantly,the proposed model is straightforward in form,and all model parameters can be obtained from direct shear tests,thus facilitating the utilization in numerical simulations.

Mesomechanical simulation of direct shear test on outwash deposits with granular discrete element method

The mechanical properties of outwash deposits which are taken as unconsolidated geo-materials with the characteristics of non-uniformity, heterogeneity and multiphase have attracted much attention in engineering. According to the results of laboratory direct shear test on the remolded samples, the soil particle parameters of numerical model based on in-situ particle size cumulative curves and 3D granular discrete element method were determined. Then, numerical experiments on different lithology, stone content and gradation composition were conducted. The results show that it is not a flat surface but a shear band that yields in the sample. The curve of particle velocity vs distance from the designed shear surface of test model that is taken as a datum plane in the vertical section of sample shows in "S" shape. The shear disturbance area is about twice the maximum diameter of stone blocks. The greater the stiffness of stone is, the rougher the shear surface is. The shear strength of outwash deposits is largely controlled by lithology and stone content, and the bite force between stone blocks is the root reason of larger friction angle. It is also shown that strain hardening and low shear dilatancy occur under high confining pressure as well as possibility of shear shrinkage. But it is easy to behave shear dilatation and strain softening under low confining pressure. The relationship between particle frictional coefficient and stone content presents an approximately quadratic parabola increase. The strain energy first increases and then drops with the increase of frictional energy. The cohesion increases with soil stiffness increasing but decreases with stone stiffness increasing. Numerical results are consistent with the laboratory test results of remolded samples, which indicate that this method can be a beneficial supplement to determine the parameters of engineering deposit bodies.

Numerical simulation of direct shear tests on mechanical properties of talus deposits based on self-adaptive PCNN digital image processing

The macro mechanical properties of materials with characteristics of large scale and complicated structural composition can be analyzed through its reconstructed meso-structures.In this work,the meso-structures of talus deposits that widely exist in the hydro-power engineering in the southwest of China were first reconstructed by small particles according to the in-situ photographs based on the self-adaptive PCNN digital image processing,and then numerical direct shear tests were carried out for studying the mechanical properties of talus deposits.Results indicate that the reconstructed meso-structures of talus deposits are more consistent with the actual situation because the self-adaptive PCNN digital image processing has a higher discrimination in the details of soil-rock segmentation.The existence and random distribution of rock blocks make the initial shear stiffness,the peak strength and the residual strength higher than those of the "pure soil" with particle size less than 1.25 cm apparently,but reduce the displacements required for the talus deposits reaching its peak shear strength.The increase of rock proportion causes a significant improvement in the internal friction angle of talus deposit,which to a certain degree leads to the characteristics of shear stress-displacement curves having a changing trend from the plastic strain softening deformation to the nonlinear strain hardening deformation,while an unconspicuous increase in cohesion.The uncertainty and heterogeneity of rock distributions cause the differences of rock proportion within shear zone,leading to a relatively strong fluctuation in peak strengths during the shear process,while movement features of rock blocks,such as translation,rotation and crossing,expand the scope of shear zone,increase the required shear force,and also directly lead to the misjudgment that the lower shear strength is obtained from the samples with high rock proportion.That,however,just explains the reason why the shear strength gained from a small amount of indoor test data is not consistent with engineering practice.

Unified analytical stressstrain curve for quasibrittle geomaterial in uniaxial tension, direct shear and uniaxial compression

Considering strain localization in the form of a narrow band initiated just at peak stress, three analytical expressions for stressstrain curves of quasibrittle geomaterial (such as rock and concrete) in uniaxial tension, direct shear and uniaxial compression were presented, respectively. The three derived stressstrain curves were generalized as a unified formula. Beyond the onset of strain localization, a linear strain-softening constitutive relation for localized band was assigned. The size of the band was controlled by internal or characteristic length according to gradient-dependent plasticity. Elastic strain within the entire specimen was assumed to be uniform and decreased with the increase of plastic strain in localized band. Total strain of the specimen was decomposed into elastic and plastic parts. Plastic strain of the specimen was the average value of plastic strains in localized band over the entire specimen. For different heights, the predicted softening branches of the relative stressstrain curves in uniaxial compression are consistent with the previously experimental results for normal concrete specimens. The present expressions for the post-peak stressdeformation curves in uniaxial tension and direct shear agree with the previously numerical results based on gradient-dependent plasticity.

Coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian simulation of a modified direct shearapparatus for the measurement of residual shear strengths

The simulation of large-strain geotechnical laboratory tests with conventional Lagrangian finite element method(FEM)techniques is often problematic due to excessive mesh distortion.The multiple reversal direct shear(MRDS)test can be used to measure the residual shear strength of soils in a laboratory setting.However,modelling and simulation generally require advanced numerical methods to accommodate the large shear strains concentrated in the shear plane.In reality,when the standard direct shear(DS)apparatus is used,the MRDS method is prone to two major sources of measurement error:load cap tilting and specimen loss.These sources of error make it difficult or even impossible to correctly determine the residual shear strength.This paper presents a modified DS apparatus and multi-reversal multi-stage test method,simulated using the coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian(CEL)method in a finite element environment.The method was successful in evaluating equipment and preventing both load cap tilting and specimen loss,while modelling large-deformation behaviour that is not readily simulated with the conventional FEM or arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian(ALE)analysis.Thereafter,a modified DS apparatus was created for the purpose of analysing mixtures of organic materials found in an Australian clay.The results obtained from the modified DS CEL model in combination with laboratory tests show a great improvement in the measured residual shear strength profiles compared to those from the standard apparatus.The modified DS setup ensures that accurate material residual shear strengths are calculated,a factor that is vital to ensure appropriate soil behaviour is simulated for numerical analyses of large-scale geotechnical projects.

Large-scale direct shear testing of geocell reinforced soil

The tests on the shear property of geocell reinforced soils were carried out by using large-scale direct shear equipment with shear-box-dimensions of 500 mm×500 mm×400 mm (length×width×height). Three types of specimens, silty gravel soil, geocell reinforced silty gravel soil and geocell reinforced cement stabilizing silty gravel soil were used to investigate the shear stress-displacement behavior, the shear strength and the strengthening mechanism of geocell reinforced soils. The comparisons of large-scale shear test with triaxial compression test for the same type of soil were conducted to evaluate the influences of testing method on the shear strength as well. The test results show that the unreinforced soil and geocell reinforced soil give similar nonlinear features on the behavior of shear stress and displacement. The geocell reinforced cement stabilizing soil has a quasi-elastic characteristic in the case of normal stress coming up to 1.0 GPa. The tests with the reinforcement of geocell result in an increase of 244% in cohesion, and the tests with the geocell and the cement stabilization result in an increase of 10 times in cohesion compared with the unreinforced soil. The friction angle does not change markedly. The geocell reinforcement develops a large amount of cohesion on the shear strength of soils.

Application of in situ direct shear device to shear strength measurement of rockfill materials

A simplified in situ direct shear test （DST） was developed for measuring the shear strength of soils in fields. In this test, a latticed sheafing frame replaces the upper half of the shear box used in the conventional direct shear box test. The latticed shearing frame is directly embedded in the ground to be tested after a construction process and is pulled with a flexible chain while a constant dead load is applied to the sample in the sheafing frame. This simplified in situ DST has been validated by comparing its results with those of triaxial tests on samples with parallel gradations under normal stresses less than 100 kPa. In this study, the DST was further validated by carrying out tests on samples with the same gradations, rather than on samples with parallel gradations, under normal stresses up to 880 kPa. In addition, the DST was performed inside fills in two applications.

Effects of water saturation and loading rate on direct shear tests of andesite

For estimating the long-term stability of underground framework,it is vital to learn the mechanical and rheological characteristics of rock in multiple water saturation conditions.However,the majority of previous studies explored the rheological properties of rock in air-dried and water saturated conditions,as well as the water effects on compressive and tensile strengths.In this study,andesite was subjected to direct shear tests under five water saturation conditions,which were controlled by varying the wetting and drying time.The tests were conducted at alternating displacement rates under three vertical stresses.The results reveal that the shear strength decreases exponentially as water saturation increases,and that the increase in shear strength with a tenfold increase in displacement rate is nearly constant for each of the vertical stresses.Based on the findings of the shear tests in this study and the compression and tension tests in previous studies,the influences of both water saturation and loading rate on the Hoek-Brown failure criterion for the andesite was examined.These results indicate that the brittleness index of the andesite,which is defined as the ratio of uniaxial compressive strength to tensile strength,is independent of both water saturation and loading rate and that the influences of the water saturation dependence and the loading rate dependence of the failure criterion can be converted between each other.

Temperature effect on shear behavior of ore-backfill coupling specimens at various shear directions

Understanding the temperature effect on shear behavior of the ore-backfill coupling structure is critical for the safety and stability of backfill stope under the condition of high horizontal stress in deep mining.Direct shear tests were carried out on the cemented rod-mill sand backfill(CRB)and ore-CRB(OCRB)coupling specimens at various temperatures(20,40 and 60°C).The shear behavior and AE characteristic parameters of OCRB at different shear directions were compared and analyzed.The results show that the temperature effect on the shear performance of CRB mainly depends on the characteristics of microstructures and main mineral phases;the performance of CRB at 40°C is relatively good;the shear deformation of OCRB has one more“peak fluctuation stage”than CRB and has a good correlation with AE characteristic parameters.The temperature can positively or negatively impact the shear strength of OCRB,depending on the temperature and shear direction;the shear performance of OCRB along the axis direction(D1)is significantly better than that perpendicular to the axis direction(D2).The co-bearing capacity of the ore-backfill coupling structure(i.e.,stopes)is closely related to the ambient temperature and principal stress orientation.

A novel method for geometric quality assurance of rock joint replicas in direct shear testing-Part 2:Validation and mechanical replicability

Each rock joint is unique by nature which means that utilization of replicas in direct shear tests is required in experimental parameter studies.However,a method to acquire knowledge about the ability of the replicas to imitate the shear mechanical behavior of the rock joint and their dispersion in direct shear testing is lacking.In this study,a novel method is presented for geometric quality assurance of replicas.The aim is to facilitate generation of high-quality direct shear testing data as a prerequisite for reliable subsequent analyses of the results.In Part 1 of this study,two quality assurance parameters,smf and V_(Hp100),are derived and their usefulness for evaluation of geometric deviations,i.e.geometric reproducibility,is shown.In Part 2,the parameters are validated by showing a correlation between the parameters and the shear mechanical behavior,which qualifies the parameters for usage in the quality assurance method.Unique results from direct shear tests presenting comparisons between replicas and the rock joint show that replicas fulfilling proposed threshold values of σ_(mf)<0.06 mm and
|V_(Hp100)|
<0.2 mm have a narrow dispersion and imitate the shear mechanical behavior of the rock joint in all aspects apart from having a slightly lower peak shear strength.The wear in these replicas,which have similar morphology as the rock joint,is in the same areas as in the rock joint.The wear is slightly larger in the rock joint and therefore the discrepancy in peak shear strength derives from differences in material properties,possibly from differences in toughness.It is shown by application of the suggested method that the quality assured replicas manufactured following the process employed in this study phenomenologically capture the shear strength characteristics,which makes them useful in parameter studies.

Design and verification of portable direct shear tester with application to remolded colluvium geomaterials

The mechanical properties of colluvium strongly govern the stability of colluvial slopes, and they arc essential for the related analysis and design. Nevertheless, their measurement is not easy on account of heterogeneity in property and difficulty of sampling. This study attempted to evaluate the shear strength of remolded colluvium by means of a simple direct shear test in the field. A portable direct shear tester was designed to overcome the inconvenience and expensiveness of the conventional large-scale in-situ direct shear test. It can be easily assembled and applied for the silnplc field direct shear test. For calibration, the results of the portable direct shear tester were compared with the results of the laboratory direct shear tester for four different types of soil samples, i.e. standard sand, slate debris, arenaceous shale debris and mixture of gravel and sand. Correlation formulas were established based on the calibration, enabling the portable direct shear tester to measure and estimate the shear strength of remoldcd colluvium in field. This study primarily focuses on the colluvium in Central Taiwan, including the lateritic Dadu Terrace and the arcnaceous shale of Taiping-Wufcng mounts. The portable direct shear tester was applied to sites selected in these areas, and the results were furthcr analyzed and discussed.

Shear Strength of Unbound Crop By-Products Using the Direct Shear Box Apparatus

The return to old building methods by mixing crop by-products with mineral binders is arousing great interest in Europe since about 25 years.The use of these bio-aggregates based materials for the design of building envelopes is a valuable opportunity to deal with increasingly demanding thermal regulations.In addition,the regulatory framework is moving towards reducing the overall car-bon footprint of new buildings.Some traditional and historic buildings are based on timber framing with earth-straw as infill material for instance.Hemp concrete is a bio-based material that can be manually tamped in timber stud walls or more recently in the form of precast blocks.Owing to their low compressive strength,bio-based concretes using a large volume fraction of plant-derived aggregates are only considered as thermal and sound insulation materials.The structural design practice of wood frame walls does not assume any mechanical contribution of hemp concrete whereas it may contribute to the racking strength of the structure.In this context,more research is needed regarding the shear behavior of crop by-products and bio-based concretes.In this case,the objective of the study was to perform direct shear tests under three levels of normal pressure on hemp shiv and rice husk as unbound crop by-products.The results showed that the friction angle of the granular skeleton based on rice husk for a given relative displacement was significantly lower than that measured on hemp shiv.This is in accordance with what had been observed on bio-based concretes cast by mixing aggregates with lime and shear strength parameters measured by means of triaxial compression.

Development of a dynamic load direct shear apparatus for the study of permafrost

The dynamic parameters of permafrost are crucial to and directly affect the accuracy of engineering design and numerical simulation. This paper describes a new dynamic load direct shear apparatus that was developed to measure these parameters. The power systems and measurement and control systems of the device are described, as is a successful validation experiment. The results show that this dynamic load direct shearing device can accurately derive dynamic shear parameters within a certain range of frequencies and ampli- tudes of shear load.

Revisiting the response of western North Pacific tropical cyclone intensity change to vertical wind shear in different directions

The effect of vertical wind shear(VWS)directions on the change in western North Pacific tropical cyclone(TC)intensity is revisited in this study.Results show that the differences in the correlations between VWS in different orientations and the change in TC nondimensional intensity highly diminish,although slight differences are still present.The subtle differences in the correlations are likely associated with different synoptic-scale patterns at upper and lower levels.This result suggests that,in addition to thermodynamic effects,dynamic roles of the synoptic-scale patterns associated with the VWS should also be taken into account when the authors examine how VWS in different directions affects TC intensity change.

Investigation on Fracture Behavior of FRP-Concrete Interface under Direct Shear

In this study, the authors reviewed and compared the existing researches on debonding performance of FRP-Concrete Interface under direct shear firstly. Following that, two determinants of the debonding ultimate bearing capacity of FRP-Concrete Interface under pure shear are introduced into this study, namely fracture-resisting force at the undamaged area and friction stress transferred along the already debonded surface. The authors deduced the formulae on fracture energy for FRP-Concrete Interface and obtained the values for fracture energy and friction stress at FRP-Concrete Interface based on the experimental results of eight specimens of FRP-Concrete Interface. On the basis of theoretical frame mentioned above, the authors concluded that the friction-resisting stress transferred along the deteriorated bi-material interface is independent of length of FRP bonded onto concrete substrates and concrete strength, but it relies on the tension rigidity （i.e., the layers of the bonding FRP, it is found that the friction stress declines substantially while the layers of FRP increases bonded to concrete substrate）. On the contrary, cohesive fracture energy is dependent on length of FRP bonded to concrete substrate and the tension stiffness of bi-material interface. In addition, the percentage of the fracture-resisting force in the ultimate debonding load at the interface decreases with the bonding length of FRP increasing, but increases with the increase of the layers of the FRP.

Mathematical Modeling of Shear Stress and Direct Shear Test for Compressible Soil: Case of Soil Bordering the Wouri River

This paper focuses on the development of the mathematical model of shear stress by direct shear test for compressible soil of the littoral region, which will be a great tool in the hand of geotechnical engineers. The most common use of a shear test is to determine the shear strength which is the maximum shear stress that a material can withstand before the failure occurs. This parameter is useful in many engineering designs such as foundations, roads and retaining walls. We carried out an experimental laboratory test of ten samples of undisturbed soil taken at different points of the border of Wouri river of Cameroon. The samples were collected at different depths and a direct shear test was conducted. The investigations have been performed under constant vertical stresses and constant sample volume with the aim to determine the frictional angle and the cohesion of the compressible soil which are so important to establish the conditions of buildings stability. Special care was taken to derive loading conditions actually existing in the ground and to duplicate them in the laboratory. Given that the buildings constructed in this area are subjected to settlement, landslide, and punch break or shear failure, the cohesion and the frictional angle are determined through the rupture line after assessed the mean values of the shear stress for the considered ten samples. The bearing capacity of the soil, which is the fundamental soil parameter, was calculated. From the laboratory experimental results, the least squared method was used to derive an approximated mathematical model of the shearing stress. Many optimizations methods were then considered to reach the best adjustment.

Characteristics and generation of elastic turbulence in a three-dimensional parallel plate channel using direct numerical simulation

Direct numerical simulations（DNSs） of purely elastic turbulence in rectilinear shear flows in a three-dimensional（3D） parallel plate channel were carried out,by which numerical databases were established.Based on the numerical databases,the present paper analyzed the structural and statistical characteristics of the elastic turbulence including flow patterns,the wall effect on the turbulent kinetic energy spectrum,and the local relationship between the flow motion and the microstructures＇ behavior.Moreover,to address the underlying physical mechanism of elastic turbulence,its generation was presented in terms of the global energy budget.The results showed that the flow structures in elastic turbulence were 3D with spatial scales on the order of the geometrical characteristic length,and vortex tubes were more likely to be embedded in the regions where the polymers were strongly stretched.In addition,the patterns of microstructures＇ elongation behave like a filament.From the results of the turbulent kinetic energy budget,it was found that the continuous energy releasing from the polymers into the main flow was the main source of the generation and maintenance of the elastic turbulent status.

Physical and mechanical properties and microstructures of submarine soils in the Yellow Sea

In recent years,the exploration of seabed has been intensified,but the submarine soils of silt and sand in the Yellow Sea area have not been well investigated so far.In this study,the physical and mechanical properties of silt and sand from the Yellow Sea were measured using a direct shear apparatus and their microstructures were observed using a scanning electron microscope.The test results suggest that the shear strength of silt and sand increases linearly with the increase of normal stress.Based on the direct shear test,the scanning electron microscope was used to observe the section surface of sand.It is observed that the section surface becomes rough,with many“V”‐shaped cracks.Many particles appear on the surface of the silt structure and tend to be disintegrated.The X‐ray diffraction experiment reveals that the sand and silt have different compositions.The shear strength of sand is slightly greater than that of silt under high stress,which is related to the shape of soil particles and the mineral composition.These results can be a reference for further study of other soils in the Yellow Sea;meanwhile,they can serve as soil parameters for the stability and durability analyses of offshore infrastructure construction.