• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.61-69
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• 2020

The uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) of rock is a basic parameter in underground engineering design. The disadvantages of this commonly employed laboratory testing method are untimely testing, difficulty in performing core testing of broken rock mass and long and complicated onsite testing processes. Therefore, the development of a fast and simple in situ rock UCS testing method for field use is urgent. In this study, a multi-function digital rock drilling and testing system and a digital core bit dedicated to the system are independently developed and employed in digital drilling tests on rock specimens with different strengths. The energy analysis is performed during rock cutting to estimate the energy consumed by the drill bit to remove a unit volume of rock. Two quantitative relationship models of energy analysis-based core drilling parameters (ECD) and rock UCS (ECD-UCS models) are established in this manuscript by the methods of regression analysis and support vector machine (SVM). The predictive abilities of the two models are comparatively analysed. The results show that the mean value of relative difference between the predicted rock UCS values and the UCS values measured by the laboratory uniaxial compression test in the prediction set are 3.76 MPa and 4.30 MPa, respectively, and the standard deviations are 2.08 MPa and 4.14 MPa, respectively. The regression analysis-based ECD-UCS model has a more stable predictive ability. The energy analysis-based rock drilling method for the prediction of UCS is proposed. This method realized the quick and convenient in situ test of rock UCS.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.495-502
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• 2023

In this study, stress relaxation tests were carried out by keeping silt type soil specimens under different strain levels. Decreases in the stress values with time data was collected to better understand the effect of the strain level on the relaxation properties of soil specimens. In addition, the stress relaxation effect on the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) values of the specimens was investigated with a series of tests. According to the results obtained from this study, the UCS values of the silt specimens significantly vary as a result of the stress relaxation effect. The UCS values were determined to increase with an increase of relaxation strain level to a threshold value. On the other hand, the UCS values were found to be affected adversely in case of high stress levels at the initiation of the relaxation, which are close to the peak level.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.115-125
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• 2020

This study aims to explore practical and useful equations for rapid evaluation of uniaxial compressive strength of concrete (UCS-C) during the preliminary design stage of aggregate selection. For this purpose, aggregates which were produced from eight different intact rocks were used in the production of concretes. Laboratory experiments involved the tests for uniaxial compressive strength (UCS-R), point load index (PLI-R), P wave velocity (UPV-R), apparent porosity (n-R), unit weight (UW-R) and aggregate impact value (AIV-R) of the rock samples. UCS-C, point load index (PLI-C) and P wave velocity (UPV-C) of concrete samples were also determined. Relationships between UCS-R-rock parameters and UCS-C-concrete parameters were developed by regression analyses. In the simple regression analyses, PLI-C, UPV-C, UCS-R, PLI-R, and UPV-R were found to be statistically significant independent variables to estimate the UCS-C. However, higher coefficients of determination (R²=0.97-1.0) were obtained by multiple regression analyses. The results of simple regression analysis were also compared to the limited number of previous studies. The strength conversion factor (k) values were found to be 14.3 and 14.7 for concrete and rock samples, respectively. It is concluded that the UCS-C can roughly be estimated from derived equations only for the specified rock types.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.361-367
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• 2011

The uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) is an important factor in the design and construction of surface and underground structures. However, the method employed to measure UCS is time consuming and expensive to apply in the field. Therefore, we developed a model to estimate UCS based on a few properties using linear regression analysis, which is a statistical method. To develop the model, valid factors from the test results were selected from a correlation analysis using a statistical program, and the model was formulated by linear regression based on the relationships among factors. UCS estimates derived from the model were compared with the results of UCS tests, to assess the reliability of the model. The relationship between rock properties and UCS indicates that the factors with the greatest influence on UCS are point load strength and shape facto r. The UCS values obtained using the model are in good agreement with the results of the UCS test. Therefore, the developed model may be used to estimate the UCS of rocks in regions with similar conditions to those of the present study area.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.465-474
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• 2024

Uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) is a critical geomechanical parameter that plays a significant role in the evaluation of rocks. The practice of indirectly estimating said characteristics is widespread due to the challenges associated with obtaining high-quality core samples. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the feasibility of utilizing the gene expression programming (GEP) technique for the purpose of forecasting the UCS for various rock categories, including Schist, Granite, Claystone, Travertine, Sandstone, Slate, Limestone, Marl, and Dolomite, which were sourced from a wide range of quarry sites. The present study utilized a total of 170 datasets, comprising Schmidt hammer (SH), porosity (n), point load index (Is(50)), and P-wave velocity (Vp), as the effective parameters in the model to determine their impact on the UCS. The UCS parameter was computed through the utilization of the GEP model, resulting in the generation of an equation. Subsequently, the efficacy of the GEP model and the resultant equation were assessed using various statistical evaluation metrics to determine their predictive capabilities. The outcomes indicate the prospective capacity of the GEP model and the resultant equation in forecasting the unconfined compressive strength (UCS). The significance of this study lies in its ability to enable geotechnical engineers to make estimations of the UCS of rocks, without the requirement of conducting expensive and time-consuming experimental tests. In particular, a user-friendly program was developed based on the GEP model to enable rapid and very accurate calculation of rock's UCS, doing away with the necessity for costly and time-consuming laboratory experiments.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.41-49
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• 2011

This study is to estimate the uniaxal compressive strength (UCS) for the weak rocks using needle penetrometer test. The appropriate ratio of the artificial rocks for this test was cement (C):bentonite (B):water (W) = 1.3:0.7:2.3 or 1.5:0.5:2.0. From the relationship between needle penetration resistance (NPR) measured by needle penetrometer test and an estimated UCS, NPR and UCS tended to increase with increasing the curing period. Also from the relationship between the measured NPR and the measured UCS, NPR-UCS was linearly increased with the curing periods of 3-day to 14-day regardless of the ratio, then in the curing periods of 14-day to 28-day it was nearly constant. In conclusion, the overall relationship between NPR and UCS shows a linear relation for the most part, it means that UCS is possible to be estimated from NPR by needle penetrometer test in the case of weak rocks.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.440-459
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• 2021

Roadheaders have begun to be adopted in Korean tunneling sites. The performance prediction models proposed by the manufacturer are used by Korean construction companies. The models use UCS (uniaxial compressive strength) value to predict the net cutting rate, but the rock specimens conducted for the uniaxial compression test have 1.0 of the diameter to length ratio. It has been reported that the specimen shape generally influences the rock strength. The previous references studying the shape effect were cited, and the UCS data of Korean rocks are also updated to analyze the shape effect on UCS. The cause of effect was discussed by previous theory. The change amount of UCS values of Korean rocks was estimated by the data, and the modified prediction model for NCR was finally suggested.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.645-666
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• 2023

Due to the steadily declining supply of natural coarse aggregates, the concrete industry has shifted to substituting coarse aggregates generated from byproducts and industrial waste. Oil palm shell is a substantial waste product created during the production of palm oil (OPS). When considering the usage of OPSC, building engineers must consider its uniaxial compressive strength (UCS). Obtaining UCS is expensive and time-consuming, machine learning may help. This research established five innovative hybrid AI algorithms to predict UCS. Aquila optimizer (AO) is used with methods to discover optimum model parameters. Considered models are artificial neural network (AO - ANN), adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (AO - ANFIS), support vector regression (AO - SVR), random forest (AO - RF), and extreme gradient boosting (AO - XGB). To achieve this goal, a dataset of OPS-produced concrete specimens was compiled. The outputs depict that all five developed models have justifiable accuracy in UCS estimation process, showing the remarkable correlation between measured and estimated UCS and models' usefulness. All in all, findings depict that the proposed AO - XGB model performed more suitable than others in predicting UCS of OPSC (with R², RMSE, MAE, VAF and A_15-index at 0.9678, 1.4595, 1.1527, 97.6469, and 0.9077). The proposed model could be utilized in construction engineering to ensure enough mechanical workability of lightweight concrete and permit its safe usage for construction aims.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.330-338
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• 2012

Though the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) of rock material is one of the key properties for rockmass characterization purposes, core samples for the test cannot always be obtained from the field. Indirect tests such as the point load test (PLT) can be a useful alternative. In this study, correlation between the UCS and the point load strength index of limestone of Imgye area was analyzed, and the linear regression equation obtained from regression analysis of two variables was suggested. The results of this study were also compared with previous studies on limestone. It was suggested that conversion factors for the same rock type from diverse areas in Korea may have different values, and more data should be obtained to increase the accuracy of regression analysis.

• International Journal of Highway Engineering
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.21-26
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• 2018

PURPOSES : The objective of this study is to evaluate the application of soil stabilization method for soft shoulder construction in the iRoad Project of Sri Lanka. METHODS : Firstly, the quantitative analysis of soil strength improvement due to soil stabilization was done for soil samples collected from iRoad construction sites. Two types of soils were selected from iRoad Project sites and prepared for soil stabilization testing by the Road Development Authority. Secondly, the appropriate stabilizer was selected at given soil type based on test results. Two different stabilizers, ST-1 and ST-2, produced in Korea were used for estimating soil strength improvements. Finally, the optimum stabilizer content was determined for improving shoulder performance. The uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) test was conducted to evaluate the strength of stabilized soil samples in accordance with ASTM D 1633. The use of bottom ash as a stabilizer produced from power plant in Sri Lanka was also reviewed in this task. RESULTS : It is found from the UCS testing that a 3% use of soil stabilizer can improve the strength up to 2~5 times in stabilized soft shoulder soils with respect to unstabilized soils. It is also observed from UCS testing that the ST-1 shows high strength improvement in 3% of stabilizer content but the strength improvement rate with increase of stabilizer content is relatively low compared with ST-2. The ST-2 shows a low UCS value at 3% of content but the UCS values increase significantly with increase of stabilizer content. When using the ST-2 as stabilizing agent, the 5% is recommended as minimum content based on UCS testing results. Based on the testing results for bottom ash replacement, the stabilized sample with bottom ash shows the low strength value. CONCLUSIONS : This paper is intended to check the feasibility for use the soil stabilization technique for shoulder construction in Sri Lanka. The use of soil stabilizer enables to improve the durability and strength in soft shoulder materials. When applying the bottom ash as a soil stabilizer, various testings should be conducted to satisfy the specification criteria.