Geomechanical characterization of a highly heterogeneous flysch rock mass by means of the GSI method

A faulted rock usually shows the swelling behavior because of clay minerals which consist of the fault gouges. It makes rock mass unstable and threatens the safety of structures built in rock mass. This study was aimed at clarifying characteristics of physical and mechanical properties of faulted rock materials. At first, microstructures and mineralogical composition associated with faulting in the fault gouge zones were analyzed by using X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and SEM microphotographs. Physical properties of the faulted rock materials from fields were measured in the laboratory. It is well known that the mechanical properties are sensitive to the mineralogical assemblage and are affected by the shapes, distribution and preferred crystallographic orientation of the components. Material and direct shear tests were also conducted on faulted rock materials under saturated and unsaturated conditions. The mechanical results were analyzed together with the analyzed result of XRD and SEM.

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Determination of hydraulic conductivity and shear strength properties of unsaturated residual soil from flysch rock mass

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/202019503022 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 195 ◽

pp. 03022

Author(s):

Josip Peranić ◽

Mariagiovanna Moscariello ◽

Sabatino Cuomo ◽

Željko Arbanas

Keyword(s):

Shear Strength ◽

Rock Mass ◽

Residual Soil ◽

Infiltration Process ◽

Near Surface ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

The Past ◽

Apparent Cohesion ◽

Flysch Rock Mass

Slopes in flysch deposits areas wide within Europe are highly prone to landslide occurrence. Depending on the material properties and climate conditions, instabilities in a form of earthflows, shallow and deep-seated landslides were observed in these formations. Typically, slope instabilities occurred after prolonged periods of rainfall. The Rječina River Valley, Croatia, built in flysch formation, is well known by several landslides occurred in the past. The weathering process of flysch rock mass and local climate conditions resulted in a specific engineering geological profile of the valley, with the unsaturated residual soil covering the bedrock. Although the behaviour of residual soil is important for a landslide triggering both through the rainfall infiltration process and (unsaturated) shear strength, hydro-mechanical properties of this material in unsaturated conditions were not investigated in the past. This paper summarizes the results of different laboratory tests performed on intact samples for hydro-mechanical characterization of the residual soil from flysch rock mass. It was found that the unique shear strength envelope could be used to determine failure conditions both for saturated and unsaturated conditions. The results obtained from strain-controlled and wetting tests performed in conventional and modified direct shear apparatuses indicated high values of the apparent cohesion that the near-surface soil can experience due to the increase of matric suction. The hysteresis effects and hydraulic paths to which soil was exposed to in the past were found to affect the soil behaviour, while the soil formation process results with a complex soil structure that imposes the necessity of using intact soil samples for proper hydraulic characterization of the soil.

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Geomechanical characterization of a heterogenous rock mass using geological and laboratory test results: a case study of the Niobec Mine, Quebec (Canada)

SN Applied Sciences ◽

10.1007/s42452-021-04617-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (6) ◽

Author(s):

Shahriyar Heidarzadeh ◽

Ali Saeidi ◽

Catherine Lavoie ◽

Alain Rouleau

Keyword(s):

Monte Carlo Simulation ◽

Monte Carlo ◽

Rock Mass ◽

Laboratory Test ◽

Rock Unit ◽

Geomechanical Parameters ◽

Characterization Study ◽

Heterogeneous Rock ◽

Geomechanical Characterization

Abstract To conduct a successful geomechanical characterization of rock masses, an appropriate interpretation of lithological heterogeneity should be attained by considering both the geological and geomechanical data. In order to clarify the reliability and applicability of geological surveys for rock mechanics purposes, a geomechanical characterization study is conducted on the heterogeneous rock mass of Niobec Mine (Quebec, Canada), by considering the characteristics of its various identified lithological units. The results of previous field and laboratory test campaigns were used to quantify the variability associated to intact rock geomechanical parameters for the different present lithological units. The interpretation of geomechanical similarities between the lithological units resulted in determination of three main rock units (carbonatite, syenite, and carbonatite-syenite units). Geomechanical parameters of these rock units and their associated variabilities are utilized for stochastic estimation of geomechanical parameters of the heterogeneous rock mass using the Monte Carlo Simulation method. A comparison is also made between the results of probabilistic and deterministic analyses to highlight the presence of intrinsic variability associated with the heterogeneous rock mass properties. The results indicated that, for the case of Niobec Mine, the carbonatite-syenite rock unit could be considered as a valid representative of the entire rock mass geology since it offers an appropriate geomechanical approximation of all the present lithological units at the mine site, in terms of both the magnitude and dispersion of the strength and deformability parameters. Article Highlights Evaluating the reliability and applicability of geological survey outcomes for rock mechanics purposes. A geomechanical characterization study is conducted on the heterogeneous rock mass by considering the various identified rock lithotypes. The geomechanical parameters of intact units and their associated variabilities are used to stochastically estimate the geomechanical parameters of the heterogeneous rock mass by employing the Monte Carlo Simulation. A comparison is also made between the results of probabilistic and deterministic geomechanical analyses. The results indicate that, in the case of Niobec Mine, the combined syenite-carbonatite rock unit could be considered as a valid representative of the entire rock mass.

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