Rock Mechanics Principles 1

Stress in rock
In-situ stress vs. Induced stress
Deformation, strength and failure of rock
Rock testing - Strength
Why study stress in rock mechanics?
Three basic reasons for an engineer to understand stress in the
context of rock mechanics:

1) Pre-existing stress state in the ground;

2) Engineering activities change the stress fields in rock masses –

change of stress leads to instability; almost all failure criteria are
expressed as a function of stress quantities.

3) Stress is complex: it is a tensor (Note the difference between a

scalar, a vector and a tensor). It is difficult to comprehend without
a clear understanding of the fundamentals.

A scalar is a quantity with magnitude only, e.g. temperature, time;

A vector is a quantity with magnitude and direction, e.g. force,
velocity and acceleration;
A tensor is a quantity with magnitude, direction and ‘plane under
consideration’. e.g. stress and moment of inertia.
Stress components
F
σ =
A
Definition of stress

(a) Normal forces and shear forces. (b) Normal stresses and shear stresses.

The normal and shear stress components are the normal and shear forces
per unit area.

A solid can sustain shear forces, whereas a liquid or gas cannot. A liquid or gas
contains a pressure, which acts equally in all directions.
 Resolution of a normal force.

A force F can always be resolved to two components: normal component Fn is

found in a direction θ from F = Fcosθ; and shear component Fs = Fsinθ
Stress within rock

The forces that are required to act in order to maintain equilibrium on a small area of a
surface created by cutting through the rock. On a very small area ∆A, equilibrium can be
maintained by the normal force ∆N and the shear force ∆S.

The normal stress and shear stress can be defined as:

Normal stress:

Shear stress:
 The stress components on a small cube within the rock
The principal stresses

The state of stress at

a point is defined by
the six independent
The principal stresses are defined as those components:
normal components of stress that act on planes
that have shear stress components with zero
magnitude.
It is convenient to specify the stress state using
these principal stresses because they provide
direct information on the maximum and
minimum values of the normal stress
components. We make the convention that
 In-situ stress
The basic motivations for
studying in-situ stress are two-
fold:

1. To have a basic knowledge of

the stress state for engineering,
e.g. in what direction and with
what magnitude is the major
principal stress acting? In what
direction is the rock most likely
to break? For such basic and
direct engineering questions, a
knowledge of the stress state is
essential.

2. To have a specific knowledge of

the boundary conditions for
stress analyses conducted in the
design phase of rock engineering
projects.
In-situ stress – where from?
Gravitational
Tectonic
Thermal
Mechanical
Rock at depth is subjected to stresses resulting from the weight (gravity) of the overlying strata, locked
tectonic stress, and thermal/mechanical effects.

When an opening is excavated in this rock, the stress field is locally disrupted and a new set of stresses
are induced in the rock surrounding the opening. Knowledge of the magnitudes and directions of these in
situ and induced stresses is an essential component of underground excavation design, since in many
cases, the strength of the rock is exceeded and the resulting instability can have serious consequences on
the behaviour of the excavations.
The vertical stress within a rock mass is subjected to the gravitational, tectonic and other forces. For rock
engineering purpose, it is generally acceptable to estimate the magnitude of vertical tress from the weight of
the overlying material, i.e. the overburden pressure.

σv = γ H

Where σz is the vertical stress in rock mass

γ is the unit weight of the overlying material
H is the depth from surface to the stress point.

In situ horizontal stress

Gravitational and other forces induce both vertical and horizontal stresses within a rock mass. The horizontal
stress at a sub-surface point can be calculated by simple statics:

σh = k σv

Where k is the ratio of average horizontal stress to the vertical stress.

In civil engineering applications when depth of excavation is relatively shallow, the k value is generally less
than a unity, and can be estimated by:
k = 1 – sin φ’ (φ’ = effective internal friction angle) e.g. when φ’ = 35°, k=0.43

In very soft materials, the k can approach 1, which is a hydrostatic condition.

At mining excavation depth, which is usually deeper, the k could be well in excess of 1. The k value can be
estimated by equation (Hoek 1997):
k = 0.25+7Eh (0.001+1/H)
Where Eh in GPa is the average deformation modulus of the overlying material, and H is the depth.
Horizontal stress based on elasticity theory
Gravitational and other forces induce both vertical and horizontal stresses within a
rock mass. The horizontal stress at a sub-surface point can be calculated by simple
statics:
v
σh = σv
1− v

Where υ is the Poisson’s ratio = lateral strain/ axial strain.

For a typical Poisson’s ratio of 0.25, we have :

σh = 0.33σv

Text book Page 56-59

Collated worldwide in situ stress data
 In-situ stress measurement
Flat jack method
Measuring the distance between P1 P1
and P2, cutting a slot in the rock,
inserting a flat jack and pressurising
it until the distance between P1 and
P2 is the same as before the slot was
cut. Thus the normal stress in rock is P2
measured.
In-situ stress measurement
 In-situ stress measurement
Us Bureau of Mines
(USBM) gauge
Text book Page 49

The CSIRO gauge

Text book Page 50
Tectonic stresses
 Subduction zone off the west coast of South America
causing high horizontal in-situ stresses (Barros et al., 1983)
Chile Earthquake –

February 27, 2010, at 03:34, rating a magnitude of 8.8 and lasting 90 seconds.
Chile earthquake - Building destroyed in Concepción
World stress map giving orientations of the maximum horizontal
compressive stress. From www.world-stress-map.org.
The World Stress Map project, completed in July 1992, involved over 30 scientists
from 18 countries and was carried out under the auspices of the International
Lithosphere Project (Zoback, 1992). The aim of the project was to compile a global
database of contemporary tectonic stress data.
A section of the stress map of the world, showing orientations of horizontal
principal stresses in and around the Australasian plate (From Reinecker et al.,
2003).
 Thermal
• Different rocks have different
thermal characteristics. If parts of
a rock mass have cooled at
different rates will produce locked-
in local stresses
 Mechanical

• The mechanical response of rock to large

imposed stress is fracture.
• Stresses are re-distributed as the rock
strains. Discontinuities break the rock
mass up into relatively small volumes,
each with its own stress regime.
 Applications
Rock as in its natural state is
stressed by gravitational, tectonic
forces etc.. An understanding of
the stress in rock mass is
fundamental to a proper
appreciation of the response of a
rock mass to change of loading
and stress conditions.
In mining applications, rock is
excavated underground and
stresses surrounding opening are
alerted and stress equilibrium is
re-established and strains in the
form of deformation are
developed as a result of the
mining activities.

Illustration of principal stresses induced in an element of rock

close to a horizontal tunnel subjected to a vertical in situ stress
σv , a horizontal in situ stress σh1 in a plane normal to the tunnel
axis and a horizontal in situ stress σh2 parallel to
the tunnel axis (after Hoek)
 In-situ stress vs. Induced stress

Construction activities alter the existing stress field; the changed stress (normally stress
increase) is called the induced stress. The diagram shows how the vertical stress
component is altered by tunnel construction. No external load has been applied, but the
removal of rock results in the surrounding rock having to accommodate a redistributed
load.
 Tunnel

(a) (b)

Principal stress vectors around a tunnel: (a) In situ stress field before
tunnelling (b) Stress field after tunnelling. (G. Ren 2008)
Tunnel
 Footing

(a) (b)

Principal stress vectors diagram: (a) In situ stress field (b) Stress field
after imposing a footing (G. Ren 2008)
What happens if stress exceeds strength?
 Stress
Failure

Overstressing of the rock pillar

Failure of the lining in a tunnel in a highly stressed rock mass.
Laboratory Testing on Rock Samples
– intact samples
 Point Load Test
AS4133.4.1 2007

AS 4133.4.1—2007
www.standards.org.au
Australian Standard®
Methods of testing rocks for engineering
purposes
Method 4.1: Rock strength tests—Determination
of point load strength index D is the distance between contact
points (Platen separation)
 Point Load Test

4A
De =
π

P × 1000 Effective
Is =
D2
area A
D 0.45
I s (50) = I s × ( )
50

AS 4133.4.1—2007
www.standards.org.au
Australian Standard®
Methods of testing rocks for engineering
purposes
Method 4.1: Rock strength tests—Determination D is the distance between contact
of point load strength index points (Platen separation)
Correlation
ROCK DESCRIPTION - example
Intact rock – Dark grey fine to medium grained, weak
SILTSTONE
Rock mass: Inter-bedded light brown and dark brown, medium
to coarse grained, medium strong SANDSTONE
Uniaxial Compression Test

Gives UCS values of intact rock

The stress-strain curve in
uniaxial compression for
intact rock

The Complete Stress-strain curve for a intact

rock sample
The stress-strain curve in
uniaxial compression
Core box