Chapter 1 Introduction

ROCK MECHANICS
FOR CIVIL ENGINEERS

Jian ZHAO Professor of Rock Mechanics and Tunnelling School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne, Switzerland

AUTHORS NOTE This current text is a preliminary draft of lecture notes under preparation for the course of Rock Mechanics in the second year teaching for civil engineering students. Use the notes carefully as they may contain errors and mistakes. Please let me know when you find any errors and mistakes.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1 Rock Mechanics as a Discipline

Rock mechanics is a discipline that uses the principles of mechanics to describe the behaviour of rocks. Here, the term of rock is in the scale of engineering. The scale is generally in the order of between a few metres to a few thousand metres. Therefore, the rock considered in rock mechanics is in fact the rock mass, which composes intact rock materials and rock discontinuities. What is so special of rock mechanics? For normal construction materials, e.g., steel and concrete, the mechanical behaviours are continuous, homogeneous, isotropic, and linearly elastic (CHILE). Properties of the manmade materials are known and can often be controlled. For rocks, due to the existence of discontinuities, the behaviours are discontinuous, inhomogeneous, anisotropic, and non-linearly elastic (DIANE). Properties of the natural geomaterials are unknown and often can not be controlled. It is important to be award that in rock mechanics, rock discontinuities dominate the mechanical and engineering behaviours. The existence of discontinuity depends on the scale. The discontinuous nature and scale dependence feature is not common in other man-made materials. Rock mechanics is applied to various engineering disciplines: civil, mining, hydropower, petroleum. In civil engineering, it involves foundation, slope and tunnel. In structural engineering, the design process generally is as following: Calculate external loading imposed on the structure; Design the structure and analyse loading in structure elements; Design the structure element and select materials. In rock engineering, or geotechnical engineering, the whole process is different. Loading condition is not easily calculateable, rock engineering, being sloping cutting or underground excavation, does not impose loading, but disturbs the existing stress field of the ground and redistribute the load. Therefore, the key process in rock engineering is to understand the how the stress field is disturbed by engineering activities and how the rock is behaving (responding) to the change of boundary conditions, and yet the material does not has a characteristics controlled by man. The objectives of learning rock mechanics are:

Chapter 1 Introduction

To understand of the mechanical behaviour of rock materials, rock discontinuities and rock masses. To be able to analyse and to determine mechanical and engineering properties of rocks for engineering applications.

1.2

Use of This Book

This textbook is used as an introduction to rock mechanics at university engineering teaching, with an emphasis to civil engineering. It is written as a self-contained book, with a brief introduction of rock as a geological material and a review of basic mechanics applicable to rock and rock discontinuity. The teaching of Chapters 2 and 3 can be selective depending on the level of knowledge that students already have. In the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), rock mechanics class is a 28 hours course in the second year after learning already engineering geology and mechanics, the teaching therefore focuses on Chapters 4, 5, 6 and 7. Subsequently, rock engineering applications are taught at later years in EPFL. Depending on the teaching hour available and overall teaching plan, the rock mechanics course could include engineering applications in Chapters 8, 9, and 10. Exercises are included in this textbook. It is highly recommended to teach this subject with exercises. At end of each chapters, recommended further reading materials are given. references cited in the text are listed at end of the book. The