• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.445-471
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• 2023

Long-term safety over millennia is the top priority consideration in the construction of disposal sites. However, ensuring the mechanical stability of deep geological repositories for spent fuel, a.k.a. radwaste, disposal during construction and operation is also crucial for safe operation of the repository. Imposing restrictions or limitations on tunnel support and lining materials such as shotcrete, concrete, grouting, which might compromise the sealing performance of backfill and buffer materials which are essential elements for the long-term safety of disposal sites, presents a highly challenging task for rock engineers and tunnelling experts. In this study, as part of an extensive exploration to aid in the proper selection of disposal sites, the anticipation of constructing a deep geological repository at a depth of 500 meters in an unknown state has been carried out. Through a review of 2D and 3D numerical analyses, the study aimed to explore the range of properties that ensure stability. Preliminary findings identified the potential range of rock properties that secure the stability of central and disposal tunnels, while the stability of the vertical tunnel network was confirmed through 3D analysis, outlining fundamental rock conditions necessary for the construction of disposal sites.

• Explosives and Blasting
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.23-35
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• 2005

Excavation of an opening in a saturated porous rock may lead to the development of pore pressure around the opening due to the redistribution of initial rock stresses. The built-up of pore pressure, in turn, may affect the mechanical behavior of rock mass and give the different pattern of stress distribution around the opening from that of the case where the coupling is neglected. In this study, the short time response of an opening excavated in saturated ground under anisotropic initial stress conditions was investigated numerically. Not on the wall of opening but at a short distance from the wall, the tangential stresses were peak during the short period after excavation when the hydro-mechanical coupling is considered.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.429-437
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• 2018

In order to reduce deformation of roadway floor heave in deep underground soft rockmass, four support design patterns were analyzed using the Fast Lagrangian Analysis of Continua (FLAC)3D, including the traditional bolting (Design 1), the bolting with the backbreak in floor (Design 2), the full anchorage bolting with the backbreak in floor (Design 3) and the full anchorage bolting with the bolt-grouting backbreak in floor (Design 4). Results show that the design pattern 4, the full anchorage bolting with the bolt-grouting backbreak in floor, was the best one to reduce the deformation and failure of the roadway, the floor deformation was reduced at 88.38% than the design 1, and these parameters, maximum vertical stress, maximum horizontal displacement and maximum horizontal stress, were greater than 1.69%, 5.96% and 9.97%. However, it was perfectly acceptable with the floor heave results. The optimized design pattern 4 provided a meaningful and reliable support for the roadway in deep underground coal mine.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.201-213
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• 1995

Understanding of the fracture processes in rock mass for hydrogeology necessitates such information as fracture mechanics including genesis, propagation, termination, and the relation of fracture distribution to geologic structures and fracture modelling, etc. A current status of information on fracture for groundwater flow in rock mass, however, is very paucity except on a few special fields throughout the world. The desired and reasonable approach method in the evaluation on the groundwater flow in fractured rock mass must be based on the thorough understanding of fracture processes and a simplified model representing fracture properties which would be met to natural conditions for the interpretation and prediction.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2003.05a
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• pp.53-67
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• 2003

In this paper, a new systematic method will be introduced, in which a Rock-mass Prediction System(RPS) predicts the geological conditions and rock mass movements before tunnel excavation and the appropriate counter-measures are taken in the expected weak zones during tunnel construction. The Rock-mass Prediction System(RPS) consists of the LIM, a horizontal con drilling and a seismic exploration method (TSP/HSP). In the Rock-mass Prediction System(RPS), the seismic exploration method (TSP/HSP) gives information on the locations of the weak zones such as major faults and voids in wide-range, and the horizontal core drillings are utilized to find exact location and widths of the faults or voids near the weak zones which was predicted by the seismic exploration method (TSP/HSP). The LIM is used to find the hardness of the rock mass and small weak zones near the excavation face. The Rock-mass Prediction System(RPS) was successfully applied to the Sol-An Tunnel and the effectiveness of the system was verified.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.505-518
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• 2021

The present paper has been carried out to understand the effects of impact loading on the rock tunnels, constructed in different region corresponding to varying unconfined compressive strength (UCS), through finite element method. The UCS of rockmass has substantial role in the stability of rock tunnels under impact loading condition due to falling rocks or other objects. In the present study, Dolomite, Shale, Sandstone, Granite, Basalt, and Quartzite rocks have been taken into consideration for understanding of the effect of UCS that vary from 2.85 MPa to 207.03 MPa. The Mohr-Coulomb constitutive model has been considered in the present study for the nonlinear elastoplastic analysis for all the rocks surrounding the tunnel opening. The geometry and boundary conditions of the model remains constant throughout the analysis and missile has 100 kg of weight. The general hard contact has been assigned to incorporate the interaction between different parts of the model. The present study focuses on studying the deformations in the rock tunnel caused by impacting load due to missile for tunnels having different concrete grade, and steel grade. The broader range of rock strength depicts the strong relationship between the UCS of rock and the extent of damage produced under different impact loading conditions. The energy released during an impact loading simulation shows the variation of safety and serviceability of the rock tunnel.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.87-99
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• 2016

We present the results of two-dimensional numerical simulations predicting the flow of groundwater in a fractured unsaturated zone. We applied the k-field distribution of permeability derived from discrete fracture network (DFN) modeling as the hydraulic properties of a model domain. To model an unsaturated zone, we set the depth from the ground surface to the underground aquifer. The rate of water infiltration into the unsaturated zone was divided into two parts, an artificial structure surface and unsaturated soil zone. The movement of groundwater through the unsaturated zone was simulated with particular emphasis on contaminant transport. It was clearly observed that the contaminants dissolved in groundwater transported vertically from the ground surface to the saturated zone.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.63-70
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• 2000

The quantitative analyses and the mechanical interpretation of discontinuity planes are the most important factor for the study of strength and deformation properties of rock masses containing discontinuity planes. However, the relationship between the factors investigated in the field and the actual mechanical properties of discontinuity planes is not fully understood. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of density, length, and spacing of joints on elastic modulus of rock masses as these values vary. A new parameter which has a direct relation with the elastic modulus of discontinuity planes is also preposed in this study. The combination of finite element methods and homogenization methods has been used for the numerical analyses of a uintcell with discontinuity planes, which is generated using random-number generation methods. The elastic modulus of the discontinuity plane is found from the numerical analyses. The final results propose not only the relation between the investigation parameters of discontinuity planes and the elastic modulus of rock masses but also a new parameter, an effect area ratio having a linear relation with the elastic modulus of rock masses.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.47-55
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• 2002

The slope reinforcing method utilized in this paper reinforces the ground overall by means of filling borehole as well as permeating grout material into ground by injecting it through the grouting pipe. In order to reflect these characteristics to design, not only the ground reinforcing effect by the structural material itself but also the ground strength improvement effect by the grouting injection must be quantitively evaluated. But precedent research of it has been insufficient. Therefore, the slope reinforcing method was applied to the weathered rockmass slope situated in the highway in order to analyze reinforcing effect and the instrumentation of slope was performed. Through analysis of this field test, the slope reinforcing method was proved to be effective and back analysis method based on instrumentation values of slope was proposed to apply to reinforcing design. In this paper, the effectiveness of reinforcing method was certified through proposed back analysis.

• 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.