• Journal of the Korean Society of Hazard Mitigation
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• v.5 no.4 s.19
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• pp.37-47
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• 2005

The purpose of this study is to estimate the bearing capacity and settlement characteristics of the weathered granite masses, and on the process to achieve the purpose, in the first place, the weathered degree according to the absorption index was examined and reviewed, then plate bearings test in in-situ depth were tested, and finally the result was compared and examined with the result of the existing, estimate method and pressuremeter test. In order to achieve the purpose of this study, a typical area distributed with weathered granite masses, gyeonggi area, was chosen as a sample site for testing, and in the result, it appeared and found out that the more the weathered degree increases when the plate bearing test are tested, the more the bearing capacity decreases a numerical indexes and the more greatly the width of the decrease of bearing capacity increases around the boundary of specific, weathered degrees. Also, In the result from estimating the bearing capacity of weathered granite masses by the existing, suggested formula, it appeared that there is a tendency that the more the weathered degree increases, the more similar the bearing capacity becomes with the result of plate bearing tests.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2004.03b
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• pp.831-838
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• 2004

To study on mechanical characteristics of weathered granite masses are difficult because of undisturbanced sampling and in-situ test. Generally, pressuremeter test is widely used to investigate the behavior of weathered rock masses. However, it has many problems to get a limit pressure because of cavity collapse, membrane damage, ete. This study aims to evaluate the mechanical characteristics of weathered granite masses using in-situ pressuremeter test and numerical analysis depending on the ratio of length and diameter of the membrane(L/D=5, 8, 10, 15, 20). Test results and data are shown that strength parameters are reduced exponentially varing weathering degree, and numerical analysis results are approximately coincided with the test results. And the ratio of length and diameter of the membrane arc not affected the parameters such as modulus of pressuremeter, shear modulus, etc. But limit pressure is increased decreasing membrane length based on numerical analysis. On the other hand, increasing the membrane length, yield pressure is decreased and plastic radius is increased in the case of same weathering degree.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.227-236
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• 2003

The evaluation of the reliable strength and deformation characteristics of weathered granite masses is very important for the design of geotechnical structure under working stress conditions. Various types of laboratory test such as triaxial compression test can be performed to determine the strength parameters. However, it is very difficult to obtain the representative undisturbed samples on the site and also the rock specimen cannot represent rock mass including discontinuities, fracture zone, etc. This study aims to investigate the strength and deformation characteristics of granite masses corresponding to its weathering and develop a practical strength parameter evaluation method using the results of PMT. To predict weathering intensity and strength parameters of the weathered granite masess in the field, various laboratory tests and in-situ tests including field triaxial test and PMT are carried out. Based on the results of weathering index tests, the classification method is proposed to identify the weathering degree in three groups for the weathered granite masses. Using the analytical method based on the Mohr-Coulomb failure criteria and the cavity expansion theory, the strength parameters of rock masses were evaluated from the results of PMT. It shows that weathering intensity increases with decreasing the strength parameters exponentially. The strength parameters evaluated with the results of PM almost coincide with the results of field triaxial test.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2003.03a
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• pp.655-662
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• 2003

Slope stability is an important issue ill civil engineering works or in open pit mines where both economy and efficiency is required. These are the long-term stability problems which depend on the change of physical properties under a certain weather condition. These can also result in progress of weathering which can change mechanical or hydro-geological properties of rock mass considerably. In this study, weathering in nature was simulated by freeze-thaw test and Soxhlet test which represent mechanical and chemical weathering respectively. Measured were elastic wave velocities, absorption rate, volume change. Uniaxial compression strengths before and after the weathering tests were also measured. The change in weight and volume of the specimens were not clearly related to the weathering process, but P, S wave velocities were clearly decreased as weathering progresses. For some class of rocks, P-wave velocity was increased probably because of the saturation due to improved connectivity of the pre-existing pores. Based on the test results, stability of the slopes were analyzed using FLAC$\^$2D/. Due to the reduced strength parameters, the factors of safety were decreased for the selected sites.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.355-364
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• 2004

A study on the weathering grade classification has been performed for granite and granite gneiss in Korea. The qualitative classification criteria of weathering were reviewed and then modified with field studies for the weathered rock masses. The thin section observations and XRD analyses for the different weathering grades rock samples showed the petrographical and petrophysical difference with respect to the weathering : the proportion of weathering-resistant minerals suck at quartz and orthoclase has a tendency to increase with the development of weathering, but that of weathering-sensible minerals such as anorthite and biotite is decreased. The ranges of physical and mechanical rock properties for different weathering grades were obtained from the laboratory rock tests and field tests for the studied rocks. And then, along with $RDI_{sq}$(Fookes et al., 1988), the weathering index $I_{a}$, (Woo, 2003) has been developed in this study to demarcate the weathering grade. Those two indices rely mainly on the water absorption ratio of rock and on the different rock strength. The range of these weathering indices have been determined with the physical and mechanical rock properties that can be obtained from simple field or laboratory tests in 4 grades $I_{a}$＞ 7 for F, 3.5 ＜ $I_{a}$ ＜ 10 for SW, 1.0 $I_{a}$＜ 6.0 for MW and $I_{a}$＜ 2.5 for HW. Consequently, the weathering index could be utilized to classify quantitatively the rock weathering grade, especially for the studied granites and the granite gneiss in Korea.