Author Identifier

Zhenjiang You: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4843-2107

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Title

International Journal of Mechanical Sciences

Volume

288

Publisher

Elsevier

School

Centre for Sustainable Energy and Resources / School of Engineering

Funders

National Overseas Top Talents Program of China (JXRSB02001)

Comments

Li, H., Pel, L., You, Z., & Smeulders, D. (2025). Brittleness indices for chemically corroded rocks under unloading confining pressure. International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 288, 110032. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2025.110032

Abstract

Rock brittleness constitutes a pivotal mechanical property for geotechnical engineering. In this paper, multi-scale investigations, involving Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), ion chromatography, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), as well as unloading tests, were conducted to examine the brittle behaviors and mechanisms of rocks under chemical-unloading confinement conditions. This paper defines rock brittleness as the capacity to withstand multiscale fracturing based on experimental investigations into multiscale damage mechanisms and macro-mechanical responses. After that, two novel brittleness indices are proposed, utilizing the dissipated energy consumption and energy-drop coefficients proposed in this study. These indices are then validated using experimental data. Following this, the coupled chemical-unloading confinement effects on rock brittleness are investigated. Results reveal that an increase in the unloading confinement rate from 0 to 0.1 MPa/s can lead to a 45.46 % increase in brittleness; chemical-induced porosity growth from 5.68 % to 7.55 % can cause a 66.43 % increase in brittleness, with the influence being amplified by the effects of unloading confinement. Moreover, the presence of kaolinite resulting from the incongruent dissolution of feldspar significantly impacts rock brittleness, leading to a decrease of 43.58 % in brittleness value. This study defines rock brittleness precisely and introduces a new evaluation method, highlighting the significant effects of unloading rate and chemical corrosion. These findings are crucial for advancing underground engineering practices.

DOI

10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2025.110032

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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