1/19/2016

ConvertMohrCircleStressDatatoRealWorldStresses

ConvertMohrCircleStressDatatoRealWorld
Stresses
StevenDutch,NaturalandAppliedSciences,UniversityofWisconsinGreenBay
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Ifrocksaresubjectedtoaminimumstressof1
MPaandamaximumstressof4MPa,whatis
theorientationofaplanewithnormalstress
3.62MPaandshearstress1.0MPa?
FirstweplottheMohrCircleandlocatethe
pointcorrespondingtothegivenstresses.

Drawaradiusfromthecenterofthecircleto
thepointcorrespondingtothegivenstresses.
Measuretheanglesfromthemaximumand
minimumstressdirectionsandnotethesense
ofeachangle.

Below,weconstructtherealworldstressstate.Themaximumandminimumstressesareperpendicularto
eachother.Let'splottheminimumstressonthehorizontalaxis.

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ConvertMohrCircleStressDatatoRealWorldStresses

Next(below)werecallthatanglesinMohrspacearetwicetherealworldangles.Sowedivideeachangle
by2andmeasurefromthecorrespondingstress,alwaysinthesamesenseasontheMohrCircle.Plotthe
line(red,right)ofthecorrectorientation.

RecallthatpointsontheMohrCirclealways
correspondtothepolestoplanes.Sotheplanewith
thegivenstressstateisperpendiculartotheline
foundinthepreviousstep.
Thenormalstressis3.62MPaandtheshearstress
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is1.0MPa.The4MPastressisatahighangletothe
plane,soanormalstressof3.62MPaisreasonable.
The1MPaminimumstressisinclinedtotheplane,
soitcan'tpossiblyresultina1MPashearstresson
theplane.Theonlywaytheshearstresscanbe1
MPaisifit'screatedbythe4MPastress.The4MPa
stresswouldpushrocksabovetheplanetotheleft
andbelowtheplanetotheright,sotheshearisleft
lateral.

ConvertingtoRealWorldOrientations
Theexampleaboveplotstheprincipalstressesonneathorizontalandverticalaxes,lookingdowntheplane
withthedesiredstressconditions.Youthenhavetorotatethediagramtofittherealworlddata.Ifyou
knowthemaximumstressisorientedalongazimuth135,youneedtorotatethediagramaccordingly.Ifthe
planeisnotvertical,youwillhavetorotatethestressdirectionsinthreedimensions,possiblyusinga
stereonet.
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