Rate-dependent behaviour of fracture propagation in salt rock: Proceedings of the 10th Conference on the Mechanical Behavior of Salt (SaltMech X), Utrecht, The Netherlands, 06-08 July 2022

This paper describes an on-going experimental and numerical modelling<br/>research project on salt rock specimens. The experimental part of the study consists of a number of Mode I fracture tests with the WST (Wedge-Splitting Test) configuration, which are performed at different loading rates and complemented by a series of standard uniaxial...

Experimental and numerical study of the time dependent behavior of fracture propagation in salt rock

In underground salt and potash mines, such as the ones in the region of Bages in central Catalonia, long-term deformations and stability of the mine tunnels are strongly influenced by the viscous (creep) behavior of saline rock. Tunnel excavation causes deviatoric stresses which in turn trigger creep strain in the salt rock. It has been often...