Evaluating the relations between brittleness and Cerchar abrasion index of rocks

Abstract

Physical and mechanical rock properties which can be directly determined or estimated empirically are always considered for rock excavability, rippability, boreability and cuttability. Brittleness (B) and Cerchar Abrasiveness Index (CAI) of rocks have often been used by many researchers. Several brittleness concepts (BC) have been proposed and used for different areas such as rock, civil and ceramic engineering. In this work, four of the BCs obtained from uniaxial compressive (UCS) and tensile strength (TS) of rocks were used, considering the experimental data given in previous studies. First, the relationships between CAI and mechanical properties of rocks found in literature were summarised. Then, the BCs were determined from UCS and TS. The rocks investigated were classified based on their geological origins. The experimental raw data were assessed by regression analysis. The empirical equations in different significance levels were derived for all data and for each geological origin. The significance levels of obtained empirical equations were evaluated to statistical student t-tests. The equations obtained were finally generalised to geological origins and compared to the given equations in the literature. © 2010 Taylor & Francis Group, London.