To ensure the safety and stability of sandstone surrounding rock in deep metal mining environments, this study systematically examined the mechanical behavior and energy evolution characteristics of sandstone subjected to varying degrees of damage under cyclic loading and unloading conditions. Standard cylindrical sandstone specimens underwent pre-loading treatment to induce different damage levels, which were subsequently verified through ultrasonic P-wave velocity tests. Following this, cyclic loading tests were performed under a consistent stress path to thoroughly assess the mechanical response and energy dissipation behavior of the specimens. The findings reveal that as the degree of damage increases, the strength and stiffness of the sandstone progressively diminish. Compared to the undamaged samples, the peak strength values of the damaged specimens decreased by 3.648%, 7.116%, 19.921% and 28.492%, respectively. Furthermore, the stress-strain curves demonstrated a transition from brittle to ductile failure modes. Furthermore, as the degree of damage increased, the average elastic modulus of the sandstone specimens exhibited a significant decline. This suggests that specimens with higher levels of damage are more susceptible to crack penetration and micro-fracture propagation. An analysis of the energy dynamics revealed that both strain energy and dissipated energy during cyclic loading generally followed a pattern characterized by an “initial drastic fluctuation followed by subsequent stabilization”. For specimens exhibiting low damage levels, strain energy remained relatively high during the stabilization phase, and the proportion of dissipated energy was low, indicating limited crack development. Conversely, specimens with high levels of damage displayed well-developed cracks, with energy distribution shifting predominantly towards dissipation. This shift renders them more vulnerable to internal fracturing and deformation-induced instability, as evidenced by a higher proportion of dissipated energy. The proportion of dissipated energy increased with the degree of damage, accompanied by a notable rise in both damping energy and damage energy contributions. The energy damage ratios for sandstone specimens at varying levels of damage were observed to be 15.030%, 15.978%, 17.508% and 23.899%, respectively. These findings suggest that as the degree of damage increases, there is a corresponding rise in the proportion of irreversible energy consumption attributable to microcrack propagation and plastic deformation. This results in heightened vulnerability and an increased potential risk of instability during cyclic loading. The mechanical weakening mechanism of damaged sandstone is primarily influenced by the interplay of local stress concentration induced by microcrack propagation, cooperative crack networking, and irreversible energy dissipation. This degradation process is characterized by distinct nonlinear and staged features. The outcomes of this study enhance the understanding of the nonlinear weakening mechanisms of damaged sandstone under cyclic loading, and provide essential theoretical insights and practical support for the design of support structures and the management of rock mass stability in deep metal mining environments.
近年来,针对损伤岩体力学特性的研究已取得一定进展。鉴于天然岩石普遍存在不同程度的初始损伤,肖桃李等(2015)通过在类岩石试件上预制规则分布的初始裂隙,研究了裂隙形态参数及其数量对力学特性和破坏模式的影响。随后,Yang et al(2024)采用“人工定制”方法对预制裂隙的天然岩石进行试验研究,探讨了天然状态下含裂隙岩石的力学特性。然而,以上研究中初始裂隙大多为规则分布的宏观裂隙,这与天然岩石内部微裂隙的随机分布及其闭合特性存在一定差异。针对该问题,李树刚等(2019)采用轴向加载预压的方法,使岩样内部产生一定的微裂隙损伤,进而研究了单轴压缩条件下初始损伤砂岩的力学性质。Lu et al(2021)对不同损伤的黄砂岩试样进行了单轴冲击压缩试验,探究初始损伤对岩体动力特性的影响。综上所述,目前针对损伤岩石力学性质的研究主要集中在单轴压缩和动态冲击等方面(Wang et al,2018;张凯等,2024),对于循环荷载下的损伤岩石力学性质的探究则较少(Ran et al,2023),尤其对于金属矿山中常见的砂岩体而言,其在循环荷载条件下的力学特性及损伤规律研究仍显不足。由于不同损伤状态下的砂岩,其力学行为、能量耗散水平和最终破坏形态不尽相同,有待进一步开展系统试验,以明晰循环荷载下损伤砂岩力学行为及其损伤特征,从而为深部金属矿山支护及灾害防治提供参考。
在获得原始完好试样后,根据需要设置不同的预损伤程度。具体做法如下:将完好试样先置于单轴压力机中,以单次加载—卸载预损伤的方式使试样内部产生一定微裂纹,获得不同损伤水平的试样。即将砂岩试样加载至峰值强度的一定比例,然后卸载,以此引入一定程度的不可逆微裂纹(Hou et al,2019)。通过改变加载峰值比例(20%,40%,60%,80%),可获得不同损伤等级的砂岩试样,为后续循环荷载试验提供必要的试样(Yu et al,2022)。为准确表征不同损伤等级岩样的内部结构状态,在预损伤处理后采用超声波法测定各砂岩试样的纵波波速,相关测量结果如图1(b)所示。整体来看,随着预损伤加载比例的提高,岩样波速下降量逐渐增大,这表明试样内部微裂纹密度逐渐升高,损伤程度随之加剧,波速测定结果可作为损伤分级的重要参考指标。
所有损伤砂岩均设置统一的循环加卸载路径进行试验,如图2所示。具体而言,在循环加卸载阶段,循环应力在下限6.8 MPa和上限15.2 MPa之间往复变化,循环次数为30次。循环加载应力幅值参考已有砂岩循环加载试验中典型的应力范围,并结合岩石样品的本身强度进行确定(Zhang et al,2023)。尽管不同研究的砂岩取样位置存在差异,但砂岩整体物性较均质,且本研究通过统一以单轴抗压强度的百分比设定应力幅值,可一定程度上确保其通用性。
此外,根据前人研究,岩石的归一化裂纹闭合、裂纹萌生阈值平均值分别为21% UCS和33% UCS(Taheri et al,2020)。因此,本研究按照25%~55% UCS的比例确定应力幅值范围,以覆盖弹性变形与裂纹演化的过渡区,从而较好地模拟深部金属矿山围岩受采动扰动影响的实际应力状态。循环次数的设置反映了在实际工程中围岩经历长期、反复荷载作用下的累积损伤效应。在循环过程中,通过力传感器和位移传感器对应力—应变响应进行实时记录。循环结束后,进入最终破坏加载阶段,持续加载直至试样失稳破坏,并重点关注破坏时的峰值应力等信息。本研究加载速率保持为400 N/s。通过上述应力路径,所有损伤砂岩样品在相同的加载路径下完成循环损伤和最终破坏,可较为准确地反映循环荷载对砂岩力学行为及阻尼特性的影响。
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