A visual determination method for uniaxial compressive strength estimation based on Croatian carbonate rock materials

• DOI: 10.1016/j.enggeo.2017.09.021
• Publication Date: 2017-10-12T18:03:41Z
• Authors: Davor Pollak; Vlatko Gulam; Iris Bostjančić
• Keywords: Lithology; Outcrop

To identify visually detectable elements that influence carbonate rock strength, a detailed inspection of 231 samples, mainly from the Adriatic Carbonate Platform in Croatia, was conducted prior to laboratory testing. ANOVA was used to detect statistically significant carbonate rock material parameters that influence UCS: Lithology, Fabric, Defects and Porosity (LFDP) and their optimal classes. ANOVA was also used to find a statistically significant model that contains four major effects on the strength of carbonate rock (LFDP) with three two-way interactions: lithology*fabric, fabric*defects and defects*porosity. According to four basic influential parameters, the new procedure is coined LFDP determination and is described in detail. The presented results indicate that the LFDP determination method is reliable enough for use in engineering geological practice on Croatian carbonate rocks but also for use in other regions. While the presented method may be applied to other regions worldwide, its suitability to local conditions should be tested. The LFDP determination method is simple, efficient, inexpensive and versatile. It can be applied to outcrops, cuts, quarries, tunnels, borehole cores and similar. However, it is important to note that this method cannot replace laboratory testing and should be only used to collect preliminary information on carbonate rock material properties and possible ranges in UCS values.