Author(s)

Scott Ureel, Moe Momayez

Department of Mining & Geological Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.

Rock abrasion plays a significant role in geotechnical design, tunneling operations and the safety of foundations from scour. It is imperative to determine such properties of uniaxial compression strength (UCS), rock quality designation (RQD) and hardness for rock engineering to help determine the amount of scour at foundation locations in order to prevent structural collapse, wear on drilling tools and help predict unstable rock conditions. Current practice for estimating maximum rock abrasion is based on the Los Angeles abrasion test; however, more research is needed to provide a more accurate and compatible method for all subsurface materials used in mining and civil engineering projects. This report will provide simple correlations relating abrasion resistance to RQD, UCS, Geological Strength Index (GSI) and Rock Mass Rating (RMR) and shear strength of metamorphic rock (Quartzite). Methods, results, recommendations and conclusions are presented. The paper also introduces recommendations for future rock abrasion techniques and discusses the use of these correlations exhibiting strong relationships between the mentioned rock properties.

Rock Abrasion, RQD, UCS, Shear Strength, LA Abrasion

Ureel, S. and Momayez, M. (2017) Simple Correlations between Rock Abrasion and Other Significant Rock Properties for Rock Mass and Intact Quartzite. Open Journal of Civil Engineering, 7, 194-207. doi: 10.4236/ojce.2017.72012.