the first step in mining activities is rock excavation in both mine development and production. constant pressure for cost reduction and creating an improved/safe work environment for personnel has naturally resulted in increased use of mechanical excavation systems in many mining operations. also, mechanical excavation and mining is more compatible with automation, meaning possibility of reduc...

Abstract. The purpose of the Wedge Splitting Test (WST) is to generate stable mode I fracture crack along a pre-established path, and be able to measure the specific fracture energy parameter of the material GF. The test is performed on standard cylindrical notched specimens. In order to make decision on the optimal notch geometry for a specific rock test, a number of WST experiments were simul...

With the current developments in imaging/computational techniques and resources, computational rock physics has been emerging as a new field of study. Properties of rocks are examined by carrying out extensive numerical simulations on rocks that have been digitized using high-resolution X-ray CT scans. The ultimate goal of computational rock physics is to supplement the traditional laboratory m...

Cap rocks are dams which can prevent the upward movement of hydrocarbons. They have disparities and weaknesses including discontinuities, crushed areas, and faults. Gas injection is an effective mechanism for oil recovery and pore pressure. With increasing pore pressure, normal stress is reduced, and the integrity of impermeable boundaries (cap rock, fault, etc.) becomes instable. A successful ...

In drilling operation the design of a proper mud weight to avoid any instability’s is important. A low mud weight may cause breakouts around the borehole whereas a high mud weight can fracture the formation. Mud weight design is based on two main factors: the mechanical properties of formations being drilled and the state of in-situ stresses in the field. While drilling in soft formations are t...

Fractures are planar discontinuities, i.e. interruption of the rock physical continuity, due to stresses. The geological fractures occur at every scale, so that any large volume of rock has some or many. These discontinuities are related to sudden elastic relaxation of elastic energy stored in the rock. The geological fractures have their economic importance. The loss of continuity in intact ro...

in this paper, after collecting the rock samples from eight mines and one high way slope, the tests for determination of dry density, uniaxial compressive strength, tensile strength (brazilian test), elastic modulus, schmidt hammer rebound number have been done on samples. in addition, in order to calculating the mean size of rock grains, quartz content, hardness and abrasivity, a thin sections...

Original scientific paper To analyse the influence of joint angle, number and spacing on the strength and acoustic emission (AE) characteristics of rock mass, the uniaxial compression model of rock specimens was established using the micro particle flow PFC2D software platform. The intact rock parameters were determined via trial and error, joints with different angles, numbers and spacing were...

Effect of Cracks on Elastic Properties of Low Porosity Rocks by Terrence Patrick Todd Submitted to the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences on May 1, 1973, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Microcracks in terrestrial and lunar rocks significantly alter elastic, thermal, and mechanical properties. The degree to which microcracks alter physica...