Effect of sample disturbance in opalinus clay shales

The sample disturbance problem for different geomaterials is reviewed in this thesis. A general discussion on the disturbance sources and complexities of the disturbance problem is followed by detailed reviews on disturbance mechanisms and effects in soil and rock. This investigation leads to the conclusions that the combination of theoretical and physical modeling is an effective way to study the disturbance problem. Following the discussion of sample disturbance in soil and rock, the main aspects of shale behavior and shale sample disturbance are introduced in order to evaluate the applicability of theoretical and physical modeling in shale. It is shown that the coupled chemical - thermal - poromechanical effects of shale behavior may be a major barrier to a successful application of these modeling methods and to a better handling of sample disturbance.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2004

Author dc:creator

• Pei, Jianyong, 1975-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• John T. Germaine.

• Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/28302

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/28302