Search Results (6)

Reaction-bonded silicon carbide (RB-SiC) is a high-performance ceramic material known for its excellent mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties. It contains phases with different mechanical properties, which introduce complex machining mechanisms. In the present work, molecular dynamics (MD) simulation was conducted to investigate the effect of abrasive size on the nano-grinding mechanism of RB-SiC. The surface morphology and subsurface deformation mechanism were investigated. The simulation results suggest that when a small abrasive is used, the surface swelling of SiC is primarily generated by the bending and tearing of SiC at the interfaces. As the abrasive radius increases, the surface swelling is mainly formed by Si atoms, which is identified as elastic recovery. Meanwhile, the material removal rate gradually decreases, and the depth of plastic deformation is obviously increased. Stocking of Si is more apparent at the interface, and obvious sliding of SiC grains is observed, forming edge cracks at the margin of the workpiece. In the subsurface workpiece, the high-pressure phase transition (HPPT) of Si is promoted, and the squeeze of disordered Si is obvious with more dislocations formed when larger abrasive is used. Full article

With the increasing depletion of shallow coal resources, deep roadway excavation has become the main direction in the development of coal mining. Due to geological conditions including high stress and extremely broken rock, disasters such as squeezing, bulging, and swelling are widely observed. The anchoring–grouting support method is one of the most effective methods of surrounding rock reinforcement. To study the mechanical characteristics of the anchoring–grouting system in broken surrounding rock, laboratory tests considering the water–cement ratio and preload were carried out. The research results show that the internal force of support and the deformation of the support surface have close relationships with the bearing stages of the anchoring–grouting system. The optimal water–cement ratio and a higher preload can improve the cooperative bearing characteristics of surrounding rock and its support, which is of great significance for enhancing the strength of surrounding rock and reducing roadway deformation. The research results can provide a reference for anchoring–grouting support design in deep roadway excavation. Full article

During the excavation of a water-conveyance tunnel in Tertiary soft rocks in China, significant deformation of the surrounding rocks and damage to the support were observed. Substantial horizontal deformation, reaching magnitudes of meters, was observed in the right side wall after a certain period of tunnel excavation. Extensive investigations, including field surveys, monitoring data analysis, laboratory tests, and numerical simulations, were conducted to understand the underlying mechanisms of this large deformation. The section of the tunnel with large deformation consisted of Tertiary sandy mudstone, mudstone interbedded with marl, and glutenite. Laboratory tests and mineral composition analysis revealed that the sandy mudstone and mudstone interbedded with marl exhibited low strength, which was closely related to the water content of the rock specimens. The compressive strength gradually decreased with increasing water content, and when the water content of mudstone interbedded with marl reached 26.96%, the uniaxial compressive strength decreased to only 0.24 MPa. Additionally, sandy mudstone and mudstone interbedded with marl contained a significant amount of hydrophilic minerals, with montmorillonite constituting 30% and 34% of the two rock samples, respectively. The tunnel passed beneath a perennially flowing gully, and a highly permeable glutenite layer was present in the middle of the tunnel. This resulted in groundwater seepage from the inverted arch during excavation, leading to the softening effect on the mudstone interbedded with marl in the lower part of the tunnel. Through numerical simulation and back-analysis techniques, the varying degrees of softening induced by groundwater were quantitatively analyzed in the surrounding rocks on the left and right sides. The study revealed that the large deformation of the tunnel was triggered by two factors: the plastic flow caused by tunnel excavation under the low strength of the surrounding rocks and the softening effect of groundwater. The damage to the support system was primarily attributed to the squeezing and swelling deformation of the surrounding rocks and the non-uniform deformation between different rock layers. Full article

The ancient levees used for flood control generally exist in the rainy areas of southern China. After years of operation, the levees have lots of problems, such as leakage, swelling, and cracking, which need to be reinforced. In this paper, combined with the characteristics of river water level fluctuations, the effect of the upside-down hanging well and curtain grouting reinforcement of the ancient levee is analyzed by a numerical method, and the variation law of the levee’s stability in the flooding process before and after reinforcement is explored. The study results show that the flooding process significantly affects the pore water pressure of the filling soil between the ancient levee and the well, and has a weak impact on that behind the well, which is conducive to the levee’s stability. The horizontal displacements of the levee and the fill present the opposite change law before and after reinforcement. Before reinforcement, the maximum horizontal displacement reached 2.75 cm, and the displacement was toward the Lan River. This was caused by the deformation of the soil squeezing the levee after the water level rose, which was extremely unfavorable to the levee’s stability. After reinforcement, the levee and fill shifted away from the river, mainly due to the hydrostatic pressures caused by the rising water level. The change in the stability safety factors of the reinforced levee is basically consistent with the flood fluctuation. The minimum value of the safety factors is 1.727, the maximum value is 2.273, and the safety factor only decreases by 24.02%, which is half of the change range of the safety factors before reinforcement. The stability of the reinforced ancient levee is largely improved. Full article

In horizontal wells, the casing string is affected by the gravity effect, temperature effect, swelling effect, bending effect, friction effect and other mechanical effects. In view of this situation, the mathematical models of casing swelling effect and temperature effect caused by volume fracturing are established. The case analysis shows that the length of the unsealed section in the vertical section has a great influence on the axial shortening of the casing during fracturing. With the increase of the unsealed section length, the axial shortening of the casing increases gradually under the same wellhead pressure. In the process of fracturing, repeated squeezing and pressurization lead to periodic changes of the wellhead pressure, casing deformation and load, which leads to fatigue damage and even fracture of casing. At the same time, a large amount of fracturing fluid is continuously injected through the casing during the fracturing process, which makes the wellbore temperature change greatly. The additional stress caused by the temperature change reduces the casing strength, which has an important impact on the wellbore integrity. The mathematical model of temperature stress and its effect on the casing strength during volume fracturing is established. With the increase of the temperature stress acting on the casing, the casing collapse strength decreases gradually. When the temperature stress reaches 200 MPa, the casing collapse strength decreases to 84% of the original. The research results can provide a reference for the casing integrity design and control in the horizontal well fracturing process. Full article

In order to mitigate the loss circulation of oil-based drilling fluids (OBDFs), an oil-absorbent polymer (OAP) composed by methylmethacrylate (MMA), butyl acrylate (BA), and hexadecyl methacrylate (HMA) was synthesized by suspension polymerization and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM). The oil-absorptive capacity of OAP under different solvents was measured as the function of temperature and time. The effect of the OAP on the rheological and filtration properties of OBDFs was initially evaluated, and then the sealing property of OAP particles as lost circulation materials (LCMs) was examined by a high-temperature and high-pressure (HTHP) filtration test, a sand bed filtration test, a permeable plugging test, and a fracture sealing testing. The test results indicated that the addition of OAP had relatively little influence on the rheological properties of OBDF at content lower than 1.5 w/v % but increased the fluid viscosity remarkably at content higher than 3 w/v %. It could reduce the HTHP filtration and improve the sealing capacity of OBDF significantly. In the sealing treatment, after addition into the OBDF, the OAP particles could absorb oil accompanied with volume enlargement, which led to the increase of the fluid viscosity and slowing down of the fluid loss speed. The swelled and deformable OAP particles could be squeezed into the micro-fractures with self-adoption and seal the loss channel. More important, fluid loss was dramatically reduced when OAP particles were combined with other conventional LCMs by a synergistic effect. Full article