• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.243-254
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• 2014

The present study introduces a numerical technique to simulate the mechanical behavior of brittle rock, based on a grain-based model combined with Universal Distinct Element Code (GBM-UDEC). Using the technique, the microstructure of rock sample was represented as an assembly of deformable polygonal grains, and the failure process with the evolution of micro tensile cracks under compression was examined. In terms of the characteristics of strength and deformation, the behaviors of the simulated model showed good agreement with the observations in the laboratory-scale experiments of rock.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.375-384
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• 2020

In this study, the application of conventional cubic law to a deep depth condition was experimentally evaluated. Moreover, a modified equation for estimating the rock permeability at a deep depth was suggested using precise hydraulic tests and an effect analysis according to the vertical stress, pore water pressure and fracture roughness. The experimental apparatus which enabled the generation of high pore water pressure (< 10 MPa) and vertical stress (< 20 MPa) was manufactured, and the surface roughness of a cylindrical rock sample was quantitatively analyzed by means of 3D (three-dimensional) laser scanning. Experimental data of the injected pore water pressure and outflow rate obtained through the hydraulic test were applied to the cubic law equation, which was used to estimate the permeability of rock fracture. The rock permeability was estimated under various pressure (vertical stress and pore water pressure) and geometry (roughness) conditions. Finally, an empirical formula was proposed by considering nonlinear flow behavior; the formula can be applied to evaluations of changes of rock permeability levels in deep underground facility such as nuclear waste disposal repository with high vertical stress and pore water pressure levels.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.395-407
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• 2022

In this paper, cracks with different angles are prefabricated in rock specimens to study the fracture characteristics of rock based on CT images. The rock specimens are prepared for compression tests according to the standard recommended by ISRM (International Society for Rock Mechanics). The effects of different angles on rock mechanical properties and crack propagation fracture modes are analyzed. Then, based on the cohesive element method and CT images, the relationship between porosity and Young's modulus as well as the fracture property is explored by the numerical modelling. In the modelling, the distribution of Young's modulus is determined by the CT image through the field variable method. The results show that prefabricated cracks reduce the mechanical properties of rock. The closer the angles of the prefabricated crack is, the greater the Young's modulus of the rock sample is. The failure process of each specimen with prefabricated cracks is formed by the initiation and propagation of crack, and the angle of the prefabricated crack will affect the type of extended crack. As part of the numerical model proposed in this paper, the microstructure of rocks is reflected by CT images. The numerical results verify the effectiveness of the cohesive element method in the study of crack propagation for rock. The rock model in this paper can be used to predict engineering disasters such as collapse and landslide caused by rock fracture, which means that the methodology adopted in this paper is comprehensive and important to solve rock engineering problems.

• Korean Journal of Geomatics
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.43-51
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• 2003

This paper presents the benefits of using close-range digital photogrammetric techniques for measuring the roughness of rock surfaces, using digital stereo images obtained from a Rolleiflex 6006 metric camera. To precisely measure surface roughness, we researched on how to use the flat and curved reference surface obtained from geometrically corrected digital images of the rock surface by using the least squares method. To test the precision of the proposed technique, the surface roughness has been measured between the reference surface and sample areas of very smooth-surfaced rock. Then the results were compared with the measurements obtained from a laser sensor profilometer.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2009.11a
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• pp.555-555
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• 2009

A web GIS based database system of thermophysical property of rocks in Korea is under construction. Rock samples were randomly collected over the whole country and sample spacings were generally 1 to 10 km. Thermal diffusivity, spedific heat, thermal conductivity, specific heat, density and porosity were measured on a collection of 1,560 rock samples in the laboratory. The sampled rocks were classified into igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rock types and the variables were statistically studied. The thermal conductivity were compared with thermal diffusivity, porosity and dry density to define any correlations and the distribution of thermal conductivity is characterized by the geostatistical analysis. The optimal mapping of thermal conductivity is very useful as a practical design component for any geothermal systems.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.150-160
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• 2017

In order to determine the porosity of rock, the 'standard test method for porosity and density of rock' proposed by the Korean Society for Rock Mechanics is commonly used. However, the standard test method, which uses a drying oven, takes 8 to 24 hours to complete the test in taking samples out of the oven every four hours and measuring the weight of the specimen. To complement these disadvantages, we devised a method for measuring rock porosity by using a microwave oven. The devised method reduced the cause of errors and the inconvenience occurred in the process of weighing samples by constructing a weight monitoring system, which monitors the drying process. A suitable heating/pause time was set up to maintain the temperature of sample below $105{\pm}3^{\circ}C$ in drying process, and an alarm system was implemented in order to stop drying process when the weight change of the rock sample is within 0.1% of the initial weight. The porosity was determined from the dry weight of the sample, which was obtained by the curve fitting of weight monitoring data. Then, the porosities obtained by using the microwave oven were compared with those obtained by the standard test method. Test results using sandstone samples showed that the porosities obtained by a microwave oven was similar to those obtained by the standard method and the porosity difference between two methods was as large as 0.4%. In addition, repeated porosity measurement using the same specimen showed that the standard deviation of the porosity, which reflects the precision of the measurement was as good as 0.23%. Therefore, a microwave oven porosity measurement system can give the porosity of rock samples with high reliability.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.51 no.7
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• pp.1835-1841
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• 2019

The mass attenuation coefficient ${\mu}_m$ for eight rock samples having different chemical composition was simulated using the MCNP 5 code in energy range($0.002MeV{\leq}E{\leq}10MeV$). Moreover, the ${\mu}_m$ for the studied rock samples was computed theoretically using XCOM database. The comparison between simulated and computed data for all selected rock samples showed a good agreement with differences varied between 0.01 and 8%. The highest ${\mu}_m$ was found for basalt rocks M2 and M1 and the lowest one is reported for limestone rocks Dike. The simulated values of the ${\mu}_m$ then were used to calculate other important shielding parameters such as the mean free path, effective electron density and effective atomic number. The exposure buildup factor EBF was also computed for the selected rocks with the contribution of G-P fitting parameters and the highest EBF attended by the basalt sample Sill and varied between 1.022 and 744 in the energy range between ($0.015MeV{\leq}E{\leq}15MeV$) but the lowest EBF achieved by basalt sample M2 and varied between 1.017 and 491 in the same energy range.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.460-470
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• 2011

Wave velocity was measured to define the weathering characteristics of rock and the strength evaluation of weathered rock on a target of the Aso gravestones with various sizes under the natural environment. As a result, the size correction method which was changed sample of the different size to one of the same size for evaluating wave velocity was proposed, and also suggested the NET (Normalized Elapsed Time) as a new weathering index of rock. In addition, the strength of the weathered rock was estimated from the weathering classification of rock using the NET. Wave velocity of welded tuff was high and didn't show velocity degradation, on the other hand, one of andesite was low and showed velocity degradation. The degree of weathering between rocks of the different size is considered to be comparable, applying the NET based on the on the $V_p/V_o$-NET curve. Furthermore, the classification of rock weathering stages using the NET based on the $S_c/S_o$-NET curve was available, and the estimation of strength for the weathered rock was also possible.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.697-726
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• 2023

Brittleness as an important property of rock plays a crucial role both in the failure process of intact rock and rock mass response to excavation in engineering geological and geotechnical projects. Generally, rock brittleness indices are calculated from the mechanical properties of rocks such as uniaxial compressive strength, tensile strength and modulus of elasticity. These properties are generally determined from complicated, expensive and time-consuming tests in laboratory. For this reason, in the present research, an attempt has been made to predict the rock brittleness indices from simple, inexpensive, and quick laboratory test results namely dry unit weight, porosity, slake-durability index, P-wave velocity, Schmidt rebound hardness, and point load strength index using multiple linear regression, exponential regression, support vector machine (SVM) with various kernels, generating fuzzy inference system, and regression tree ensemble (RTE) with boosting framework. So, this could be considered as an innovation for the present research. For this purpose, the number of 39 rock samples including five igneous, twenty-six sedimentary, and eight metamorphic were collected from different regions of Iran. Mineralogical, physical and mechanical properties as well as five well known rock brittleness indices (i.e., B₁, B₂, B₃, B₄, and B₅) were measured for the selected rock samples before application of the above-mentioned machine learning techniques. The performance of the developed models was evaluated based on several statistical metrics such as mean square error, relative absolute error, root relative absolute error, determination coefficients, variance account for, mean absolute percentage error and standard deviation of the error. The comparison of the obtained results revealed that among the studied methods, SVM is the most suitable one for predicting B₁, B₂ and B₅, while RTE predicts B₃ and B₄ better than other methods.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.165-178
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• 2020

This paper investigates the effect of the jaw's curvature, also known by contact angle and jaw arc central angle (2α), of the Brazilian test apparatus on indirect tensile strength of various rock types. That's why, ten rock samples including limestone, marble, skarn, granite, diorite, and granodiorite were collected from some quarries in different provinces of Iran. Petrographic, mineralogical and textural investigations were performed using thin section analyses. Physical properties of the selected rock samples namely dry and saturated unit weights, porosity, water absorption, and specific gravity were determined for the rock samples. In addition, Brazilian tensile strength at different 2α angles (i.e., 2α = 0°, 10°, 15°, 20°, 45°, and 60°) were determined for the rocks in the laboratory. Results show that the parameter for the rocks is between 3.81 MPa at 2α=0° and 54.76 MPa at 2α=60°. This means that Brazilian tensile strength increased with increasing 2α angle from 0° to 60°. Also, it was found that the highest change rate of the Brazilian tensile strength occurs in range of 2α=15°-30° for most studied rock samples. In some tested samples, the parameter is decreased only at 2α = 60°. The values of Brazilian tensile strength of the rocks tested by flat and standard jaws are near to each other.