• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.307-319
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• 2011

Cyclic loading due to traffic, excavation and blasting causes microcrack growth in rocks over long period of time, and this type of loading often causes rock to fail at a lower stress than its monotonically determined strength. Thus, the crack growth and coalescence under cyclic loading are important for the long-term stability problems. In this research, experiments using gypsum as a model material for rock are carried out to investigate crack propagation and coalescence under monotonic and cyclic loading. Both monotonic and cyclic tests have a similar wing crack initiation position, wing crack initiation angle, cracking sequence and coalescence type. Three types of crack coalescence were observed; Type I, II and III. Type I coalescence occurs due to a shear crack and Type II coalescence occurs through one wing or tension crack. For Type III, coalescence occurs through two wing or tension cracks. Fatigue cracks appear in cyclic tests. Two types of fatigue crack initiation directions, coplanar and horizontal directions, are observed.

• Proceedings of the KSEEG Conference
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• 2001.04a
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• pp.171-174
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• 2001

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.53-62
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• 1997

Fracture mechanics properties of rock materials can he applied to predict the distribution of natural fractures in rock masses, and also to assess the safety of rock slopes and underground structures. In this study, rock fracture toughness and other fracture rrechanics properties of sorne lithologies showing apparently rock-property-controlled distribution of natural fractures were measured. Propagation behaviors of natural and experirnental fractures were also characterized both qualitatively and quantitatively, in terns of the propagation types and sorne statistical parameters. It was concluded that the application of fracture mechanics theories to the ge6logic materials should be based on the geological background and evidences.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.364-372
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• 1999

In this paper, mechanical characteristics of micro-defects in granitic rock was studied. Crack spacing and length were investigated by scanline survey in specimen of granite. To estimate the direction and distribution of potential microcrack in granite, thin sections were made for three direction of Rift, Grain and Hardway axis of the rock specimen. The density and length of microcrack were investigated quantitatively. Three directions of microcracks are comparatively perpendicular. Crack density varies as direction differs, but crack length doesn't show influence of direction.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.248-260
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• 2004

Damage in brittle rock due to stress increase starts from initiation of microcracks, and then results in failure by forming macro failure planes due to propagation and coalescence of these discrete cracks. Conventionally, continuum approaches using macro-failure criteria or a number of elasto-plastic models have been major solution to implement rock damage and failure. However, actual brittle failure processes can be better described in phenomenological approach if initiation and propagation of discrete fractures are explicitly considered. This study presents damage and failure process of rock using a boundary element code, FRACOD, which has been developed to model fracturing process of rocks. Through a series of numerical uniaxial compressive tests, the feasibility of the developed model was verified, and realistic rock failure process was reproduced considering scale effects in rocks. In addition, the fracturing process and the corresponding rock damage in the vicinity of deep shaft in rock mass were presented as an application of this approach. This approach will be expected to contribute to finding better engineering solutions for the analysis of stability problems in brittle rock masses.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.86-94
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• 2009

A three dimensional rock joint element was developed considering fracture mechanics and subcritical crack growth to simulate non-linear behavior and the progressive failure of rock joints. Using this 3-D joint element, joint shear tests of rock discontinuities were simulated by a numerical method. The asperities on the joint surface began to fail at stress levels lower than the rock fracture toughness and continued progressively due to subcritical crack growth. As a result of progressive failing in each and every asperity, the joint showed non-linear stress-time behavior including stress hardening/softening and the reaching of a residual stress.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.275-284
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• 1998

Deformation behavior and microcrack development due to uniaxial compressive cyclic loading in the Pocheon granite were investigated using the ultrasonic velocity measurements and the differential strain analysis(DSA). Most microcracks were developed along the direction parallel to the loading axis. Microcracks developed at the early stage of cyclic loading were formed by propagation of pre-existing cracks. Ultrasonic velocity measurement, DSA and measurement of permanent deformation are good tools to represent microcrack development in rock. Since results from each method are slightly different, microcrack development should be interpreted from all three methods. The magnitude of microcracks developed at the early stage of cyclic loading under 80% loading level is twice compared with those under 70% loading level. The highest volumetric crack strain is about 3000, indicating that the Pocheon granite will fail with 0.3% occupation of microcrack in volume.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.56-63
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• 1999

Rock behaves in a complex way due to the discontinuities. To describe the complicated failure and deformation behavior of rock, many researches were focused on the development of crack models. This study discusses the validity of the sliding and shear crack model to systematically fractured rock, i.e. coal. The model was also implemented into a numerical analysis. For that, a finite element program was modified in several ways. To describe the transverse isotropy in two-dimensional analysis, the stress-strain relationship was modified for the direction of the axis of symmetry. Also, the changes of the effective elastic moduli according to the crack growth were calculated. A simple example of two-dimensional laboratory uniaxial compression test was analyzed. The results coincided with the observations obtained from the laboratory tests.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.226-233
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• 1998

Microcracks in rock materials, whether natural or induced, provide useful information on the engineering performance of in situ rockmasses. A population of preferentially oriented microcracks has observable effects on the physical properties of a rockmass, but their effects may not be evident if the rock material is highly anisotropic due to other causes. An experimental program was undertaken to investigate the effect of rock fabrics on the physical properties of rock materials. In this study, anisotropy in the circumferential wave velocity and the direction of induced fractures under axial point loading were measured. Rock specimens (NX-size) of the leucocractic Pocheon granite were cored from rock blocks, retaining the relative directions of each specimen. Another set of specimens was prepared from the rock cores of the same meterial, obtained in the field. The master orientation line (MOL) was set to be the representative direction of the microcracks in the specimen. Variation of the circumferential wave velocity of each specimen was then measured along the core, keeping the MOL as reference. The direction of the minimum wave velocity was nearly perpendicular to the direction of the MOL. Coring of smaller-sized (EX-size), concentric specimens from the NX specimens were then followed, and axial point loading was applied. The direction of induced fractures due to axial point loading was closely related to the MOL direction, confirming the prior test result.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.207-213
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• 1998

A study was conducted to determine the characteristics of acoustic emission(AE) events generated by the expansive cement induced rock fracturing. The dominant frequency and the maximum amplitude of the AE events are changed in relation to the rate of expansive pressure development in the hole. The dominant frequencies are in the range of 150∼230kHz for the small hole tests and 400∼500kHz for the large hole test. The maximum amplitudes are in the range of 0.015∼0.050cm/sec and 0.025∼0.064cm/sec, respectively. The fact that AE events of higher amplitude with higher frequency on the large hole test and lower amplitude with lower frequency on the small hole tests were detected, may strongly imply that the amount of energy consumed for a macro-crack in both tests may be similar. The expansive cement induced crack propagates stably without any distinguished event having higher amplitude and this implies that a macro-crack is a result of stable growth of micro cracks.