Influence of heterogeneity on thermo-mechanical behaviour of rocks

Abstract

A new methodology combining Weibull functions and the real mineral composition of granite is proposed, which overcomes the shortcomings of using existing methods for the heterogeneity characterization of rocks at the crystal-size or grain-size level. The proposed Weibull-mineral based model can simulate thermal cracking of rocks in a more realistic way compared with previous methods such as the mineral-based model. The study also reveals the importance of thermo-mechanical property distributions at the crystal-size level for the overall thermo-mechanical behaviours at larger scale. Supported by lab tests, the new model can reproduce the mechanical behaviour of heterogeneous materials. The thermal cracking of granite at elevated temperatures is also possible to be predicted.