• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.276-283
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• 2012

Changes in rock properties due to freezing and thawing cycles ranging from $-20^{\circ}C$ to $10^{\circ}C$ were checked for the typical Korean rocks: granite (weathered), limestone, sandstone, tuff, shale and basalt. The porosity, seismic velocity, shore hardness and specific gravity were measured every 10 cycles for each type of rock up to 40 cycles. The specific gravity was rarely changed. Granite (w), shale and basalt decreased gradually in their shore hardness and seismic velocity values, these values for limestone, sandstone and tuff changed only a very little. The porosity increased in the granite (w), shale and basalt, whereas in the others it did not change. Due to the low tensile strength with high porosity, granite (w), shale and basalt were susceptible to the F-T cycles. A linear regression equation was calculated based on the experiment results according to properties and types of rock. The relationship between the freeze-thaw sensitivity (=initial porosity/initial tensile strength) and the coefficients of the regression equation was examined. With additional experimental data, the coefficients of the regression equation can be estimated using the F-T sensitivity. This makes it possible to predict the properties of rock as affected by freeze-thaw weathering by only measuring the initial properties without knowledge of the regression equation coefficients for each type of rock.