ROCK MECHANICS

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF ROCKS

ROCKS DEFORMATION
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF ROCKS
ENGINEERING ASPECTS OF ROCKS
REPORTERS:

ELYSSA MICHELLE RESHELL ANNE LOWELA D. MARIE CLAIRE

C. MICUA D. LUIS RUFANO C. SERVANDO

PHYSICAL ROCK MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

PROPERTIES OF DEFORMATION PROPERTIES OF ASPECTS OF
ROCKS ROCK ROCKS
OBJECTIVES:

 To understand the mechanical behavior of rock materials, rock

discontinuities and rock masses.

 To be able to analyze and to determine mechanical and engineering

properties of rocks for engineering applications.
WHAT IS ROCK MECHANICS?

Rock mechanics is a discipline that uses the principles of mechanics to

describe the behavior of rocks. Here, the term of rock is in the scale of
engineering. The scale is generally in the order of between a few meters to a
few thousand meters. Therefore, the rock considered in rock mechanics is in
fact the rock mass, which composes intact rock materials, rock materials,
and rock discontinuities.
MECHANICAL BEHAVIOURS BEHAVIORS DUE TO THE
(CHILE) EXISTENCE OF
DISCONTINUITIES
 Continuous (DIANE)
 Discontinuous
 Homogeneous  Inhomogeneous
 Isotropic  Anisotropic
 Linearly Elastic  Non-linearly Elastic
IN WHERE ENGINEERING DISCIPLINES CAN ROCK
MECHANICS BE APPLIED?

 Calculate external loading imposed on the structure

 Design the structure and analyze loading in structure elements

 Design the structure element and select materials.

 WHAT IS THE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF ROCKS?

Physical properties may be

known as Index Properties, which
describes the rock material and helps
in classifying them.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES

• Specific Gravity, Density, Porosity and Water Content

• Hardness
• Abrasivity
• Permeability
• Wave VeloAcity
 Specific Gravity, Density,
Porosity and Water Content
MINERALOGIC COMPOSITION, STRUCTURE AND TEXTURE

QUARTZ MICA PYROXENE DOLOMITE CALCITE

FELDSPAR HORNBLENDE OLIVINE KAOLIN

This is the intrinsic property controlling the strength of the rock. Although there exist more
than 2000 kinds of known minerals, only about nine of them partake decisively in forming the
composition of rocks.
SPECIFIC GRAVITY (G)
Is the ratio of the density of solids to the density of
water. The specific gravity can tell us, based on its
value, if the object will sink or float in our reference
substance.
UNIT WEIGHT (γ)
Unit Weight also known as specific weight, is
one of the terms that, loosely speaking, describe
and relate size (volume), amount (mass),
concentration (density), and force (weight), as
well as specific gravity.
DENSITY (p)
The density of an object in a given volume is measure of how
compact or heavy it is. The density of rock material varies and is
often related to the rocks porosity.
VOID RATIO (e)
Voids or cavities are open spaces in the ground that are
commonly encountered as unforeseen ground conditions in
engineering geology. Void Ratio is the ratio of the volume of
voids to the volume of solids, and is closely related with porosity
POROSITY (φ)
The porosity of a material tells how densely it is packed. It
is the proportion of non-solid material volume to total material
volume. It decreases with increasing age of the rock and the
depth of the rock.
Moisture Content
Moisture Content is, simply, how much water is in a product. It influences
the physical properties of a substance, including weight, density, viscosity,
conductivity, and others. The weight of water in the voids divided by the
weight of dry solids in the rock sample is the ratio of moisture content.

Degree of Saturation
The Degree of Saturation denotes the actual relationship between the
weight of moisture existing in a space and the weight that would exist if
the space were saturated. It can be calculated by dividing the total volume
of voids in the rock sample by the volume of water in the void. The rock
mass having higher porosity has higher degree of saturation.
 HARDNESS
Hardness is the characteristic of a solid material
expressing its resistance to permanent deformation.
Hardness of rock materials depends on several factors,
including mineral composition and density.
 ABRASIVITY
Abrasivity measures the abrasiveness of a rock materials
against other materials, e.g., steel. It is an important
measure for estimate wear of rock drilling and boring
equipment.
 PERMEABILITY
Permeability is a measure of the ability of a
material to transmit fluids. Permeability of rock
material is governed by porosity.
 WAVE VELOCITY
Measurements of wave are often done by using P wave and
sometimes, S waves. P wave velocity measures the travel
speed of longitudinal (primary) wave in the material, while S-
wave velocity measures the travel speed of shear (secondary)
wave in the material.
Q&A
PORTION
What are the Physical
Properties of rocks?
Answer:
• Specific Gravity, Density, Porosity and Water Content
• Hardness
• Abrasivity
• Permeability
• Wave Velocity
What does CHILE stands for?

Answer:
• C- Continuous
• H- Homogenous
• I- Isotropic
• LE- Linearly Elastic
What are the 9 minerals that partake
decisively in forming the composition of
rocks?

Answer:

Quartz, Feldspar, Mica, Hornblende, Pyroxenes,

Olivine, Calcite, Kaolin, and Dolomite
BRING ME!
WHAT IS ROCK DEFORMATION?

Rock deformation is a process of changing/transformation of rocks due to stress and heat.

TYPES OF DEFORMATION
Fault
Fold
Joint
FAULT FOLDS

Normal fault

Reverse fault

Syncline Anticline
Strike-slip fault Basin
Dome

Oblique fault Dome Basin

JOINTS

COLUMNAR
JOINTS
JOINTS

SHEETING
ROCKS ARE STRESSED
Did you know that the rocks experience stress?
Stress- Is the force exerted per unit area and strain is the physical change that results in
response to that force.
THREE KINDS OF STRESS

TENSIONAL STRESS COMPRESSIONAL STRESS SHEAR STRESS

Tables showing type of stress and resulting strain:
TYPES OF STRESS ASSOCIATED RESULTING STRAIN ASSOCIATED AND
PLATE BOUNDARY OFFSET TYPES
TYPE
TENSIONAL DIVERGENT NORMAL NORMAL
COMPRESSIONAL CONVERGENT REVERSE REVERSE
SHEAR TRANSFORM STRIKE-SLIP STRIKE - SLIP

Strain – Deformation or change of shape a rock body experiences when under differential
stress. Strain is proportional to stress.

Large stress = Large Strain

STAGES OF ROCK DEFORMATION

3 SUCCESIVE STAGES OF DEFORMATION

1. Elastic Deformation 3. Fracture/ Brittle Strain

2. Ductile Deformation/ Plastic Strain Two Classes of Materials Under Stress
• Brittle Material
The types of Plastic Strain Folding
• Ductile Material
 Anticline Fold
 Syncline Fold
Factors that influence the type of permanent
 Asymmetrical Folds
strain in rocks experiencing the same amount
 Overturned Folds
of stress are temperature, confining stress, time
 Plunging Folds
and strain rate, and composition.
 Plunging Anticline
 Plunging Syncline
BRING ME!
WHAT IS THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF ROCKS?

Mechanical Properties may be known as Strength Properties as they give information

about the performance of rock materials when subjected to a particular loading system.
Mainly including: Strength characteristics. Deformation characteristics, and Stability
characteristics.

There are two methods used in testing the strength: Classification of Strength
1. Direct Methods I.) Compressive Strength
II.) Tensile Strength
2. Indirect Methods III.) Shear Strength
CLASSIFICATION OF STRENGTH

I. COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH DIRECT METHOD

• Uniaxial Strength 1. Uniaxial Compression Test
HYDRAULIC
LOAD MACHINE

LOAD CELL STRAIN GAUGE

CONDITIONER

SAMPLE TOP PISTON

PC
SAMPLE SAMPLE
HOLDER

BOTTOM PISTON
CANTIEVER
SYSTE,M

LOAD FRAME

COMPRESSION TESTING MACHINE

DIRECT METHOD
1. Tri-axial Compression Test
LOAD

LOADING PISTON

LOADING CAP
RUBBER SEALING
RING PERPEX CYLINDER

SOIL SPECIMEN

POROUS DISC PROTECTIVE MEMBRANE

VALVE VALVE
PORE-PRESSUREMEASUREMENT AND CELL-
DRAINAGE PRESSUREMEASUREMENT
EFFECTS OF CONFINING PRESSURE
 Peak strength increases
 There is a transition from typically brittle to fully ductile behavior with the introduction
of plastic mechanism of deformation
 The region incorporating the peak of the axial stress-axial strain curve flattens and
widens
 The post-peak drop in stress to the residual strength reduces and disappears at high
confining stress

EFFECTS OF PORE WATER PRESSURE

 Transition from ductile to brittle behavior
 INDIRECT METHOD
1. Point load Test 2. Schmidt or Rebound Hammer Test
BODY

5 mm INDICATOR
RIGID FRAME
LATCH
ROCK SAMPLE
HAMMER
PRESSURE WITH
MAX. INDICATOR SPRING
STEEL RULE
HAND PUMP

PLATEN SHAPE PLUNGER

AND TIP
HYDRAULIC RADIUS
PISTON RELEASE
VALVE
A. Instrument ready B. Body pushed C. Hammer is released D. Hammer rebounds
for test toward test
object
II. TENSILE STRENGTH

Direct Method:
Rock specimen is subjected to uniaxial tensile loading
along its axis. The principal difficulties associated with
tensile tests on rock is the prevention of failure within
the grips and the elimination of bending in the
specimen.
Indirect Method:
the Brazilian Test of Mellor and Hawkes can be
utilized. The Brazilian disc test is a useful technique to
determine the tensile strength of rock material.
III. SHEAR STRENGTH
• Shear Strength Tests
TWO METHODS FOR EVALUTION OF SHEAR STRENGTH OF ROCKS

1. Direct Shear Test

a.) Shear Box Test – performed to figure out a soil sample’s shear strength.

b.) Shear Test on Rock Cubes - used to test many configurations of rock specimens.

2. Indirect Shear Test

a.) Punch Shear Test - effective test method for assessing mechanical qualities
ENGINEERING ASPECTS OF ROCKS

Engineering Properties of Rocks used as Constructions Materials

 Aesthetics Uses  Road Metal

 Building Stones  Rail Ballast
 Dimension Stones  Energy Dissipaters
 Aggregates
Basic Fundamental Properties of the Materials
 Strength
 Economy
ENGINEERING PROPERTIES OF ROCKS
1. The first set include all those properties for which a rock must be tested for selection as a material
for construction such as a building stone, road stone or aggregate for concrete making.
2. The second set of the properties include the qualities of a natural bed rock as and where it exists.
That would determine its suitability or otherwise as a construction site for a proposed engineering
project.

Common engineering properties typically obtained from laboratory tests includes;

1. Specific gravity 5. Shear strength
2. Point load strength 6. Durability
3. Compressive strength
4. Tensile strength
TYPES OF ROCKS USED FOR BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS

GRANITE SANDTONE LIMESTONE LATERITE SLATE

BASALT MARBLE QUARTZITE TRAVENTINE GNEISS

IMPORTANCE OF ROCK MECHANICS IN
BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS?
BRING ME!
THE END