Lingtao Mao

Bio: Lingtao Mao is an academic researcher from China University of Mining and Technology. The author has contributed to research in topics: Stress field & Stress (mechanics). The author has an hindex of 13, co-authored 33 publications receiving 666 citations.

Energy Dissipation and Release During Coal Failure Under Conventional Triaxial Compression

Abstract: Theoretical and experimental studies have revealed that energy dissipation and release play an important role in the deformation and failure of coal rocks. To determine the relationship between energy transformation and coal failure, the mechanical behaviors of coal specimens taken from a 600-m deep mine were investigated by conventional triaxial compression tests using five different confining pressures. Each coal specimen was scanned by microfocus computed tomography before and after testing to examine the crack patterns. Sieve analysis was used to measure the post-failure coal fragments, and a fractal model was developed for describing the size distribution of the fragments. Based on the test results, a damage evolution model of the rigidity degeneration of coal before the peak strength was also developed and used to determine the initial damage and critical damage variables. It was found that the peak strength increased with increasing confining pressure, but the critical damage variable was almost invariant. More new cracks were initiated in the coal specimens when there was no confining pressure or the pressure was too high. The parameters of failure energy ratio β and stress drop coefficient α are further proposed to describe the failure mode of coal under different confining pressures. The test results revealed that β was approximately linearly related to the fractal dimension of the coal fragments and that a higher failure energy ratio corresponded to a larger fractal dimension and more severe failure. The stress drop coefficient α decreased approximately exponentially with increasing confining pressure, and could be used to appropriately describe the evolution of the coal failure mode from brittle to ductile with increasing confining pressure. A large β and small α under a high confining pressure were noticed during the tests, which implied that the failure of the coal was a kind of pseudo-ductile failure. Brittle failure occurred when the confining pressure was unloaded—an observation that is important for the safety assessment of deep mines, where a high in situ stress might result in brittle failure of the coal seam, or sudden outburst.

Visualization of the complex structure and stress field inside rock by means of 3D printing technology

Abstract: Accurate characterization and visualization of the complex inner structure and stress distribution of rocks are of vital significance to solve a variety of underground engineering problems. In this paper, we incorporate several advanced technologies, such as CT scan, three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction, and 3D printing, to produce a physical model representing the natural coal rock that inherently contains complex fractures or joints. We employ 3D frozen stress and photoelastic technologies to characterize and visualize the stress distribution within the fractured rock under uniaxial compression. The 3D printed model presents the fracture structures identical to those of the natural prototype. The mechanical properties of the printed model, including uniaxial compression strength, elastic modulus, and Poissons ratio, are testified to be similar to those of the prototype coal rock. The frozen stress and photoelastic tests show that the location of stress concentration and the stress gradient around the discontinuous fractures are in good agreement with the numerical predictions of the real coal sample. The proposed method appears to be capable of visually quantifying the influences of discontinuous, irregular fractures on the strength, deformation, and stress concentration of coal rock. The method of incorporating 3D printing and frozen stress technologies shows a promising way to quantify and visualize the complex fracture structures and their influences on 3D stress distribution of underground rocks, which can also be used to verify numerical simulations.

Computation of fractal dimension of rock pores based on gray CT images

Abstract: The characterization of pore structure in rocks is relevant in determining their various mechanical behaviors. Digital image processing methods integrated with fractal theory were applied to analyze images of rock slices obtained from industry CT, elucidating the characteristics of rock pore structure and the relationship between porosity and fractal dimensions. The gray values of pixels in CT images of rocks provide comprehensive results with respect to the attenuation coefficients of various materials in corresponding rock elements, and these values also reflect the effect of rock porosity at various scales. A segmentation threshold can be determined by inverse analysis based on the pore ratios that are measured experimentally, and subsequently binary images of rock pores can be obtained to study their topological structures. The fractal dimension of rock pore structure increases with an increase in rock pore ratio, and fractal dimensions might differ even if pore ratios are the same. The more complex the structure of a rock, the larger the fractal dimension becomes. The experimental studies have validated that fractal dimension calculated directly from gray CT images of rocks can give an effective complementary parameter to use alongside pore ratios and they can suitably represent the fractal characteristics of rock pores.

Visualization and Transparentization of the Structure and Stress Field of Aggregated Geomaterials Through 3D Printing and Photoelastic Techniques

Abstract: Natural resource reservoirs usually consist of heterogeneous aggregated geomaterials containing a large number of randomly distributed particles with irregular geometry. As a result, the accurate characterization of the stress field, which essentially governs the mechanical behaviour of such geomaterials, through analytical and experimental methods, is considerably difficult. Physical visualization of the stress field is a promising method to quantitatively characterize and reveal the evolution and distribution of stress in aggregated geomaterials subjected to excavation loads. This paper presents a novel integration of X-ray computed tomography (CT) imaging, three-dimensional (3D) printing, and photoelastic testing for the transparentization and visualization of the aggregated structure and stress field of heterogeneous geomaterials. In this study, a glutenite rock sample was analysed by CT to acquire the 3D aggregate structure, following which 3D printing was adopted to produce transparent models with the same aggregate structure as that of the glutenite sample. Uniaxial compression tests incorporated with photoelastic techniques were performed on the transparent models to acquire and visualize the stress distribution of the aggregated models at various loading stages. The effect of randomly distributed aggregates on the stress field characteristics of the models, occurrence of plastic zones, and fracture initiation was analysed. The stress field characteristics of the aggregated models were analysed using the finite element method (FEM). The failure process was simulated using the distinct element method (DEM). Both FEM and DEM results were compared with the experimental observations. The results showed that the proposed method can very well visualize the stress field of aggregated solids during uniaxial loading. The results of the visualization tests were in good agreement with those of the numerical simulations.

Laboratory In Situ CT Observation of the Evolution of 3D Fracture Networks in Coal Subjected to Confining Pressures and Axial Compressive Loads: A Novel Approach

Abstract: Accurate characterisation of the three-dimensional (3D) fracture network of coal is of vital significance to enhancing coal seam permeability during simultaneous extraction of deep coal and methane resources. The limitations of traditional experimental methods prevent direct in situ observation and characterisation of the 3D fracture network and its evolution during loading processes. This study presents a novel approach that incorporates computed tomography and servo-controlled triaxial loading techniques to accomplish the laboratory in situ observation of the continuous evolution of 3D fracture networks inside coal samples which were subject to confining pressures and axial compressive loads. Spatial growth and morphologies of the interior fractures at various loading stages were captured in situ and extracted using imaging processing algorithms. The 3D fracture networks observed at different loading stages were quantitatively characterised using fractal theory and compared to evaluate the influences of confining pressures and vertical loads on their evolution. The results indicated that the original existing fractures of coal closed when the specimens were subject to confining pressures and vertical compressive deformation were in the linear elastic stage. Load-induced fractures expanded notably only when the axial compressive load reached the maximum value. The fractal dimension of the 3D fracture network tended to decrease initially and subsequently increased during the loading process, which reflects the evolutionary characteristics of coal fractures from a closed to an expanded state.

Effects of Acoustic Emission and Energy Evolution of Rock Specimens Under the Uniaxial Cyclic Loading and Unloading Compression

Abstract: Characteristics of energy accumulation, evolution, and dissipation in uniaxial cyclic loading and unloading compression of 30 sandstone rock specimens under six different loading rates were explored. Stress–strain relations and acoustic emission characteristics of the deformation and failure of rock specimens were analyzed. The densities and rates of stored energy, elastic energy, and dissipated energy under different loading rates were confirmed, and an effective approach for the equivalent energy surface was presented. The energy evolution of rock deformation and failure were revealed. It turns out that the rock deformation behavior under uniaxial cyclic loading and unloading compression remained almost unchanged compared with that of uniaxial compression. The degree of match between reloading stress–strain curves and previous unloading curves was high, thereby demonstrating the memory function of rock masses. The intensity of acoustic emission fluctuated continually during the entire cyclic process. Emissions significantly increased as the stress exceeded the unloading level. The peak of acoustic emission increased with increasing loading stress level. Relationships between energy density and axial load indicate that the rock mass possesses a certain energy storage limitation. The energy evolution of rock masses is closely related to the axial loading stress, rather than to the axial loading rate. With increasing axial loading stress, stored energy varied most rapidly, followed by that of the elastic energy, then dissipated energy. Energy accumulation dominates prior to the axial load reaching peak strength; thereafter, energy dissipation becomes dominant. The input energy causes the irreversible initiation and extension of microcracks in the rock body. Elastic energy release leads to sudden instability of rock bodies and drives rock damage.

Energy Dissipation and Release During Coal Failure Under Conventional Triaxial Compression

Abstract: Theoretical and experimental studies have revealed that energy dissipation and release play an important role in the deformation and failure of coal rocks. To determine the relationship between energy transformation and coal failure, the mechanical behaviors of coal specimens taken from a 600-m deep mine were investigated by conventional triaxial compression tests using five different confining pressures. Each coal specimen was scanned by microfocus computed tomography before and after testing to examine the crack patterns. Sieve analysis was used to measure the post-failure coal fragments, and a fractal model was developed for describing the size distribution of the fragments. Based on the test results, a damage evolution model of the rigidity degeneration of coal before the peak strength was also developed and used to determine the initial damage and critical damage variables. It was found that the peak strength increased with increasing confining pressure, but the critical damage variable was almost invariant. More new cracks were initiated in the coal specimens when there was no confining pressure or the pressure was too high. The parameters of failure energy ratio β and stress drop coefficient α are further proposed to describe the failure mode of coal under different confining pressures. The test results revealed that β was approximately linearly related to the fractal dimension of the coal fragments and that a higher failure energy ratio corresponded to a larger fractal dimension and more severe failure. The stress drop coefficient α decreased approximately exponentially with increasing confining pressure, and could be used to appropriately describe the evolution of the coal failure mode from brittle to ductile with increasing confining pressure. A large β and small α under a high confining pressure were noticed during the tests, which implied that the failure of the coal was a kind of pseudo-ductile failure. Brittle failure occurred when the confining pressure was unloaded—an observation that is important for the safety assessment of deep mines, where a high in situ stress might result in brittle failure of the coal seam, or sudden outburst.