TRIAXIAL TESTIR!

• FOR STRENGTH OF ROCK JOINTS

by

s. andW.J. Heck
(b)

INTROIYdCTION

While the strength of rock materials has been investigated for many
years, the strength of a rock mass in-situ is likely to be considerably
less and controlled by its defects or geologic separations - joints, faults,
bedding, altered zones, etc. In recent work in rock engineering for dams
and underground chambers this has led to a concept of rock failure in shear
on a sizable joint (or othe• •efect) or on a combination of joint surfaces
suchas shownby Figure 1A•cj. Henceit has becomeimportantto determine
the shear strength of the joint and/or its filli•. This problem is being
approached in a number of ways:in thelaboratory;by directshear and
triaxial tests and in-situ by direct she•tests• z and even in the triaxial
form as devised by MueLler at Kurobe DamTM .

The scope of this paper is limited to laboratory triaxial tests for

determini• the shear strength of the rock Joint, bedding plane or fault
and/or the material filling such geologic separation. A key factor is
that these tests do not use an intact core as would be employed to test
the rock material; rather the specimenis selected (or re-cored in the
laboratory) to include an open joint or other defect, oriented at the in-
clination of the usual failure plane in the triaxial test - some 45ø to
60ø fromthe ho?•ontal as shown
by FigurelB. Followingexploratory
tests by Jaeger •oz on a quartz porphyry with plaster filli• the joints,
the Corps of Engineers Missouri River Division laboratory has been con-
ducting tests of this nature for slightly over the past year on several
types of rocks from various underground projects. Early results are
presented with possible applications in engineering analyses and include
an evaluation of a granite from the NORADunderground project plus its
improvement by bond grouting with epoxy - this grouting, rock bolting,
and other features of the NOHADproject being covered by two

(a)Chief,
Geology,
Soils&Materials
Branch,
Corps
ofEngineers,
Missouri River Division, Omaha, Nebraska

(b)Geologist,
Missouri
RiverDivision
L•boratory,
Corps
of Engineers,
Omaha, Nebraska

(c)It is interesting
thattestsof jointedrockmodels
areshowing
both
of the two types of failure surfaces vis,r,,!ized - unpublished work
in process by L. Mueller in Salzburg shown the senior author in
May 1964

98
 TON

CHAMBER

-MEMBRANE
ROCK
JOINT$

EAR
POSSIBLE FAILURE
SURFACE S
i "• STRESS
FLUID-- -1---"' ll•'/•
NORMAL.•
STRESS
'•JOIN'l'INROCK
CORE

ca) POSSIBLE FAILURE SURFACES (B) ROCK TRIAXIAL TEST

FIG. I

OU•ET FOR
W/RES FROM
- LOAD CELL AND OVERFLOW

0 - RING

-- RUBBER O-RING

SEAT
LOAD CELL --
0 -RING
FILM
BRONZE
0 VERFLO W
ROCK

ROCK
INSERT FOR WIRE

PACKII•/G
TE FL ON
0 - RING
'i
0 - RING

OVERFLOW OUTLET FOR PORE

TUBE
;SURE 1•4EASUREMENT
AND STRAIN GAGE LEADS

CONNECTION TO
ROCK TRIAXIAL-MODEL I PRESSURE

FIG, 2

ROCK TRIAXIAL-MODEL 2
FIG. 4

99
companion
papers
presented
tothissymposium
(4)&(5).
EQUIPMENT

The initial model triaxial apparatus at the MRD laboratory is shown

in Figures 2 and 3- Confining pressures up to lO,000 psi can be main-
tained, while axial loads are applied with Baldwin Testing machines -
200,000 or 400,000 pound capacity. Interchangeable caps permit testing
both 2 1/8 and 2.4 inch size cores. Important features of the apparatus
are: (1) the teflon packing seal, which is very effective in preventing
oil leaks and reducing side friction; (2) use of vinyl plastic bands to
encase the specimen and steel platens to prevent oil punctures at the
interfaces; (3) use of rubber tubing from a motor bike inner tube as rubber
membranes which easily withstand pressures up to lO,000 psi.

Fig. 3

In assembling, a small overflow tube of plastic is coiled aroum•l

the specimen(see Fig. 3) and serves to vent top of the chamberwhile it
is pumped full of anti-foaming hydraulic oil. Pressure in the oil is
raised to the desired chamber pressure and maintained constant during a
test by •u•,•al_ operation of a screw piston - shown attached to the base
in Fig. 3- This serves to compensate for volume changes resulting from
strain of the specimen and is currently being replaced by an automatic
pressure regulatort•r controllingchamber pressure similarto that
described by Obert• •. Axial strain is measuredby a 1/lO,O00 inch dial

lOO
gage which is currently being replaced by a linear differential transformer
for automatic recording. Strain is corrected for deformations of the steel
parts whichare of hardenedsteel (Rockwell C58 or harder), except the
ch_a_mber
cylinder is ofl•grmal steel. The apparatus was origimally designed -
principa• •y by MacIver TM - with portability as a consideration •n_d_
has
proven relatively simple to operate.

For further capabilities, a second generation model is now being

built along the lines illustrated by Fig. 4. A load cell is included close
to the specimen to eltm•nate any friction error. As the laboratory has
had considerable success in measuring strain with SR-4 gages mountedon
the surface of intact cores tested for unconfined compression in open air,
the equipment is arranged for similar use of SR-4 gages in the triaxial
test. By mounting a gage across a joint, it may even be possible to
measure movement on the failure plane of a pre-jointed specimen. Outlets
are also included to measureand/or regulate pore pressure in intact cores.
The adverse effect of pore pressure is well recognized in soil mechanics
from the concept of effective stress creating shear strength as consisting
oftheto•7
• and
by Handin stressminuscule
Robinson•Ul pore
has pressure.
demonstrated In rock
the mechanics,
validity of thisearly work
effective
stress concept for a few sedimentary rocks. However, little is known on
the extent of compressibility and porosity needed in a rock for it to be
significantly weakened by pore pressure.

PROCEDURE

For testing Joints, cores are selected to include a joint or fresh

break which is inclined 45ø to 65ø from the horizontal. •hen it is desired
to include a particular geologic feature, an NX size core (2 1/8 inch) is
frequently taken from a 6-inch rock core by recoring in the laboratory.
Since these s,.•a•!_]:diameter cores can be oriented in almost any direction,
this recori• method has been very successful, particularly on interbedded
limestones and shales.

It is well known that compressive strengths of rock cores can vary

considerably if the ends of the specimens are not approximately normal to
the axis of the core, parsd.lel to each other, and if these end surfaces
are not very nearly flat or planer. Special care and effort is used to
obtain true ends. Special holding and aligni• jigs are used for sawing
the specimens with a diamond saw and for surface grinding. Specimens are
cut to give a length 2 to 2• times the diameter. After endsof the cores
are sawed off, the end surfaces are ground flat and trued up frcm any
irregularity by using a surface grinder a•i No. 200 carborundum grinding
compound. To insure almost complete flatness, the specimens are finished

(d)B.N. MacIver
-U. S. Waterways
Expr.Sta.,Vicksburg,
Miss.,while
formerly with the MRD Laboratory

lol
oy l•ppmn• o:• • •lass plate with No. 600 cmrborundum.
Finished cores are soaked in water for 3 d•ys ami then surface dried
just prior to testing. Objective is to approach saturation during testing,
as there is considerableevidencethat the strength of rock variesfi•versely
with th•l•ount
Bierrum' - ß.
of water
absorbed,
asshown
bythework
of Serafim•J
and
For cores with the failure plane pre-established at a joint, seam,
bedding, or other defect the multi-stage triaxial test has been very useful.
After the coreh•s begunto fall underthe first confiningpressure(•-I ),
the pressure is raised to the next stage ami again the core is loaded until
failure; then the confining pressure is raised once more to the next higher
stage (•-•) andthe coreloadedagainto failure. This produces
a
stress-strain curve of the shape shown in Figure 5. On occasion the spec-
imen h•s been almost completely unloaded and the B loading stages repeated

.•/ NATURAL
ß

5TAG• E 1350 8.00

STAGE 3 3000 //.00
.

I 02.
I 0.4
I 0.6
I 0.8
I 1.0
I
AXIAL STRAIN- PERCENT

STRESS-STRAIN CURVE,MULTISTAGE TRIAXIAL TEST

QUARTZ MONZONITE,MEDIUM GRAINED
FIC.,.5

with the peak stress for each stage of the 2nd cycle being found nearly
the same as that of the same stage in the first cycle. Most of the time
only 3 stages of confining pressures are used, but sometimes as many as
5 stages can be obtained. One must be careful though, not to strain the
specimen too far because this can cause misalignment of the steel platens
ami introduce new stresses from eccentric loading. By this method, a

102
single specimen can give a shear strength envelope from which the co-
efficient of joint friction can be determined.

This objective, shear strength of the joint, is easily obtained

graphically by constructing Mohr's circles •s shownin Figure 6. Using
stage 4 of this figure as an example, the Mohr's circle is drawnon the
diameter AB so that the coordinates of point A represent stress com•Lttions
onthe minorprincipalplane( • and'• ) •_n•likewisethe coordinates
of point B represent conditions on the major principal plane ( •/ and
•t ) ' both• and• beingzeroontheprincipal
planes.The
2O
i I I
QUARTZ MONZONITE - CORE
STAGES 1,2,$-MULTISTAGE, 112
SUCCESSIVœLY INCREASING 0.$ •0.1

G .I • '•'=30• '
• •C • •R•IX•D FAIL•R•
3 E

O,

40.
3 8 • 12 16 20 24 28 32 36
NORMAL STRESS-O-10 S PSI

TYPICAL MOHRS CIRCLES

FIG. 6

line AC is then drawn p•rallel to the joint plane to intersect the circle
at point C whose coordinates are the desired stresses on the joint plane
( •- and 1• ) - proofof this constructJonqUil
be foundin mostbooks
on soil mechanics such as Taylor or Spa•er '• . The Mohr's envelope
for shear strength on the joint plane is then drawn as the average of
results simllarily determined for each Mohr's circle - points i to 4
inclusive on Figure 6 - with its inclinmtion being considered the joint
friction angl_e
• It shouldbe notedthat this useof the Mohrdiagram
is specifically-for the case where the failure plane is pre-established
by the presence of the Joint. It differs from the more commonMohr's
envelope for a homogenousspecimenwith little cohesion (where the failure
plane is not pre-fixed) which would be drawn tangent to circle 4 at point

108
E, ?ith•the failure plane theoretically being inclined at the angle EAB -
45ø + • where • is the friction angle of the homogenous
specimensuch
as soil•or intact rock.

First results were obtained from a limited series of tests on the

Pikes Peak granite from the NORADunderground project in Colorado. •lle
the granite varies, that tested is coarse grained; consisting of large
crystals of orthoclase and microline feldspar surrounded by abunda_•t quartz
with lesser amounts of biotite and hornblende. Little lineation or fabric
structure is present and the joints tend to be planar with varying degrees
of roughness. Fig. 7 shows results as the conventional Mohr's shear

TENSION COM PRESSION

20,000

•. 15,000
,¾ NTACT CORES

• IO,
OOO

5,000

_.•OUTED
JOINTS
.- "'"--•-J OINTS UNCEMENTED

TENSILE •/ 5,000 I0,000 15,000

STRENGTH NORMAL
STRESS-O'-PSI
PRESTRESS BY BOLTS

NORAD GRANITE- COARSE GRAINED

FIG. 7

envelopes. The highest envelope represents tests on intact cores; the

lowest is from tests on open Joints. One can conceive of these two
envelopes as limits for the strength of the Jointed •ock mass - never as
high as the strength of the intact core, seldom as low as the strength
of the open Joint, but rather between these limits and often nearer the

104
lowerone.
with The
bonded ,,••eand
epoxy envelope shows
indlc•tes thetheshear
major strength
of
improvement wetjoints
obtained over
the strengthof the unbonded joint. It is interestir•gthat the tensile
strengthof the epoxy(4•DO- 7000psi) is 4 to 5 timesgreaterthanthat
of the intact rock, so that in a tensiontest the core specimens generally
broke in the intact rock and not in the glued joint.

Similar data have also been obtained from tests on a quartz monzonite
from Nevada. This rock is essentially :,n•ltered or fractured; light gray
andporphyriticwith a fine to medium-grained
groundmass. 0rthoclaseand
plagioclase
feldsparswith quartzare the principalmineralsof the rock.
Mohrstrengthenvelopes of the quartzmonzonite
are givenin Figure8 and
showa similarity in rangeandpositionto thoseof the NORAD granite. A

TENS SION COMPRESSION

•=$6
ø
I
/•---IN
TA
CTCORES
I

' NA TURAI OPEN JOIN TS

• 8 ['

i 4
• SECOND.
THIRD.AND
FOURTH
STAGES
20 24

• TENSILE
S TRENG TH
4 8 12
NORMAL STRESS - 67- I0 $PSI 16
MOHR STRENGTH ENVELOPES-QUARTZ MONZONITE
FIG, 8

greaternumber of testsweremade withthe quartzmonzonite to establish

the strengthof open,uncementedjoints, at variousanglesrangingfrom
38to 66 degrees fromthe horizontalandwithconfining pressuresupto
10•000 psi. Theplot of Figure8 shows resultsfrom6 coreswitheach

105
point derived from a single Mohr's circle, including the 4 circles of
Figure 6. W•le results from the first stage of a multi-stage test are
sometimes considered more reliable than those from later stages, it appears
from Figure 8 that the results from all stages are best represented by
a singleshear
envelope,
showing
a jointfrictionangle•j • 32ø.
DIS•JSSION

•xile test results are always interesting, the end product is their
utility in application to a practical problem. application is
the appraisal of rock bolting for strengthening rock for example, in
the alestressed zone of weakened rock around an opening where the joints
have been opened by bl&sting damage and by yield from stress relief. As
one concept, assume that Mohr's Circle A at the bottom of Figure 7
represents the stress conditions at a particular point after mining an
opening. Since Circle A extends above the shear envelope, this indicates
failure conditions along uncemented joints at the point considered. Although
the overal 1 mass may have a greater strength and thus an apparently adequate
safety factor, this over-stress condition could still be hazardous because
of the risk of progressive failure from the over-stressed point progressing
successively to adjacent points until the overal 1. safety factor is greatly
reduced. Now if a rock bolt system is inst•l led with the ability to pre-
stress the rock by the amount shown in Figure 7, this changes the stress
conditions to Circle B, which indicates ample safety by being well below
the shearenvelope.Forthosewhomightpreferformulas
overdiagrams,•12•
this particular case has been reduced to math_•tical equations by Jaeger • •.

As another example, assume a vertical cut is made through rock having

joints inclined toward the excavation. A cut at the left side of Figure 1A
would represent this condition with the potential hazard of a wedge of rock
sliding into the excavation. If one can obtain a reasonable appraisal of
the shear strength of the joints or their filling material, it is then a
simple matter to a•al_yze the benefits of pre-stressing by different bolting
systems for stabilizing the rock face. For this type of problem and for
somewhat similar problems involving sliding of concrete structures on
weaker planes at some depth within the rock foundation, the laboratory is
currently testing dolomite from two damsites in the Ozarks - r•ther s•.milar
to the dolomite underlying the Missouri School of Mines.

•b_•l_e early results from this type of triaxial test are seeming to
give useful values for the above types of problems, they have led to the
investigation of a numberof other aspects (possibly refinements):

•1 1o Effect of joint inclination - althoughJaeger's pilot

testsTM suggestthisoiS not apt to be large providedonekeepswithin
the r•_•ge of 45ø - 65 ß

2. Effect of joint roughness.Some

evidencesuggest• maybe
a maximum at low pressures and reduces as the points of the crystals are
sheared off, tentatively interpreted as a broken line type of Mohr's

106
envelope on Figures 7 and 8. From limited data such as Figure 6 it is
also possible that the envelol•2•or joint strength maybe curved at higher
pressures as found by Robinson TM for intact rock.

3. Evaluation of n•turAil.ly cemented Joints. Limited tests with

joints well bonded by such minerals as calcite and quartz show quite .high
strengths, approaching that of the intact core.

4. Further evaluation of epoxy and other chemicals for bond

grouting.

Although the application of this type of triaxial testing to rock

specimens is stt•l in its infancy, early results have been sufficiently
encouraging that this approach is being prosecuted as one phase of a
broad research program in rock mechanics which the Corps of Engineers is
undertaking. It seems highly probable that this research will significantly
aid the Corps work in design and construction of dams, tunnels, under-
ground powerhouses and underground defense install ations.

REFERENCES

(1) M. Rocha - "Mechanical Behavior of Rock Foundations in Concrete Dams"

Trans. 8th Int. Congresson Large Dams, Edinburgh, 196•,
Volo l, p. 785

(2) M. Nose - "RockTests In-Situ - - - and Design of Kurobegawa

No. 4
Dam". Trans. 8th Int. Congresson Large Dams, Edinburgh
196•, Vol. I p. 219

(5) J. C. Jae6er - "TheFrictional Properties of Joints in Rock"

Geofisica Pure e Applicata - Milano, 1959, Vol. 43, p. 148

(4) L. B. Underwood
& C. J. Distefano - "Developmentof a RockBolting
System for Perme•uentSupport at NORAD". 6th Symposiumon
Rock Mechanics, Mo. School of Mines, 1964

(5) Ho B. Erickson - "ChemicalGrouting at NORAD". 6th Symposium

on Rock
Mechanics, Mo. School of Mines, 1964

(6) Lo Obert - "An Inexpensive Triaxial Apparatus for Testing Mine Rock" -
U.S. Bureau of Mines, Rpt. 6332, 1963

(7) J. Handin;R. V. Ha•er; Jr.; M. FriedmanandJ. N. Feather -

"Experimental Deformration of Se•tm-ntary Rocks Under
Confining Pressure: Pore Pressure Tests", Bul. Amer.
Assoc. Petroleum Geologists, May 1963

(8) L. H. Robinson•Jr. - "TheEffect of Pore and ConfiningPressure

on the Failure Process in Sedimentary Rock•, •rd
Symposium on Rock Mechanics, Colo. School of Mines,
July 1959

107
 (9) J. L. Serafim and J. J. B. Lopes - "In-situ Shear Tests and Triaxial
Tests of Foundation Rocks of Concrete Dams". Proc. 5th
Int. Conf. Soil Mechanics, P•ris, 1961, Vol. I, p. 533

(lO) L. B•errum- Discussionat sessionon RockStrength, Trans. 8th Int.

Congresson Large Dams, Edinburgh, 1964 - being published
in Vol. V.

(11) D. T•ylo.r - "Fundamentals

of Soil M•chanlcs",JohnWiley, p. 316
or M. Spangler - "Soil Engineerimp", Int. Textbook Co.,
P. 277

(!2) J. C. Jaeger - "Elasticity Fracture and Flow - with Engineering and

Geological Applications" - John Wiley - 2nd ed. 1962,
p. 3-93

108