Level of Education
4-year college degree
ECTS
2 credits
Training Structure
College of Sciences
Description
This course unit provides an overview of the mechanical behavior of rocks based on the results of laboratory-scale studies. The different types of laboratory experiments are described, and the various mechanical behaviors are discussed and illustrated with experimental data. Hydrostatic compression, uniaxial compression, and triaxial compression tests are thus described. Elastic, plastic, and viscous behaviors are examined, and the combination of these behaviors is applied to describe rock behavior.
Concepts related to the behavior of discontinuities, as well as fracture mechanics, are discussed. The concepts of creep and delayed behavior will also be addressed to examine the long-term behavior of rock masses.
To quantitatively analyze mechanical behavior, the concepts of stress and strain tensors will be introduced. These will enable the introduction of elastic strain calculations based on elastic moduli. The calculation of stresses on planes, based on knowledge of the stress tensor, will be addressed in the general case and illustrated using Mohr’s diagram.
Objectives
The EU’s objective is to raise students’ awareness of the relevance of rock mechanics to classic problems in Earth sciences. Students will need to understand the main types of mechanical behavior and apply them to rocks, while attempting to account for their full complexity. They will also need to know how to use the stress tensor to calculate stresses on planes, such as geological discontinuities.
Mandatory Prerequisites
None
Knowledge Assessment
Comprehensive ongoing assessment consisting of:
- a written exam covering the course material and exercises
- an oral presentation on an analysis of experimental data from the literature.
Target Skills
- Understand the key issues in rock mechanics and its applications
- Understand the major mechanical behaviors of rocks
- Be able to interpret experimental data in terms of mechanical behavior
- Know how to use the stress tensor to calculate stresses on planar discontinuities.
Bibliography
Handbook of Rock Mechanics, Volumes I and II, 1999, published by the French Committee on Rock Mechanics.