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Zheng, L. Surrounding Rock Deformation. Encyclopedia. Available online: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/60129 (accessed on 22 September 2026).
Zheng L. Surrounding Rock Deformation. Encyclopedia. Available at: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/60129. Accessed September 22, 2026.
Zheng, Lionel. "Surrounding Rock Deformation" Encyclopedia, https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/60129 (accessed September 22, 2026).
Zheng, L. (2026, September 18). Surrounding Rock Deformation. In Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/60129
Zheng, Lionel. "Surrounding Rock Deformation." Encyclopedia. Web. 18 September, 2026.
Surrounding Rock Deformation
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Surrounding rock deformation refers to the time-dependent change in shape and position of the rock mass immediately adjacent to an underground excavation — such as a tunnel, roadway, cavern, or borehole — caused by the redistribution of in-situ stress after excavation [1]. Before excavation, the rock is in equilibrium under the virgin stress field; removal of material at the opening boundary causes stress concentration around the opening and induces displacements — radial convergence, wall displacement, roof sag, and floor heave — that may be elastic, elastoplastic, or viscoelastic depending on rock-mass quality, depth, and groundwater conditions [2]. The deformation field is governed by the stiffness, strength, and discontinuity geometry of the rock mass and is commonly analyzed using the convergence–confinement method, in which a ground-reaction curve relates radial displacement at the wall to the support pressure provided by linings, rock bolts, or shotcrete [3]. The term is distinguished from intact-rock deformation measured on laboratory specimens and from surface subsidence by its scale and by its location within the rock mass around the opening.

surrounding‑rock deformation underground excavation rock‑mass displacement in‑situ‑stress disturbance

References

  1. Jaeger, J.C.; Cook, N.G.W.; Zimmerman, R.W. Fundamentals of Rock Mechanics, 4th ed.; Blackwell: Malden, MA, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-632-05759-7. https://www.wiley.com/en-fr/shop/general-introductory-earth-sciences/fundamentals-of-rock-mechanics-4th-edition-p-9780632057597
  2. Brady, B.H.G.; Brown, E.T. Rock Mechanics for Underground Mining, 3rd ed.; Kluwer: Dordrecht, 2004.
  3. Hoek, E.; Brown, E.T. Underground Excavations in Rock; Institution of Mining and Metallurgy: London, 1980.
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