Modeling of Rheological Deformation of Inhomogeneous

Rock and Associated Time-Dependent

Response of Tunnels
Tao Xu1; Chun-An Tang2; and Jian Zhao3
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Abstract: An exponential creep model on the basis of material properties degradation law was applied in the paper to simulate the rheo-
logical behavior of inhomogeneous rock and time-dependent response of rock tunnels. The primary, secondary, and tertiary creep regimes
associated with damage were observed in the simulations, indicating that the macroscopic creep failure is linked to clusters of microstructure
damage evolution at a mesoscale. Simulations on the time-dependent response of tunnels in the long-term under different coefficients of
lateral pressure show that creep deformation and damage occurs in rock mass at tunnel sidewalls around rock mass under the coefficient of
lateral pressure less than unity, whereas creep deformation and damage occurs at the roof and floor of the tunnel under the coefficient of lateral
pressure larger than unity. Under the hydrostatic pressure of the coefficient of lateral pressure equal to unity, creep deformation and damage
randomly occurs and damage localization forms and failure occurs at weak zone of the tunnel. Furthermore, tunnel closure displacements of
the tunnel wall along the horizontal direction under three coefficients of lateral pressure are directly proportional to the coefficients of lateral
pressure. Tunnel closure will be a maximum in the maximum principal stress direction and a minimum perpendicular to it for the coefficients
of lateral pressure differing from unity. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)GM.1943-5622.0000130. © 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
CE Database subject headings: Tunnels; Rheology; Deformation; Rocks; Time dependence; Damage; Simulation.
Author keywords: Tunnels; Rheological model; Time-dependent response; Damage; Numerical simulation.

Introduction proposed the model of the time-dependent tunnel convergence and

Time-dependent deformations of rock play an important role in the
design and construction of tunnels in the rock masses with time-
dependent strength and deformation properties. When a tunnel is
driven through rock masses, the state of equilibrium of the sur-
rounding rock masses is disturbed, resulting in tunnel wall closure.
In some types of rock masses, the closure and pressure on tunnel
supports may increase for months or years after the excavation ow-
ing to rheological behavior of the surrounding rock masses, which
greatly influences the selection of the initial tunnel support system,
the excavation layout, and the determination of its load-carrying
capacity. To gain an insight into the actual deformation and fracture
processes occurring near an underground opening, Kaiser and
Morgenstern (Kaiser et al. 1985; Kaiser and Morgenstern 1981a,
1981b, 1982) carried out a series of experimental tests on time-
dependent deformation of small tunnels. Pan and Dong (1991a, b)
1
Associate Professor, Center for Rock Instability and Seismicity Re-
search, Northeastern Univ., Shenyang 110004, Liaoning Province, China;
formerly, Associate Professor, Center for Material Failure Modeling Re-
search, Dalian Univ., #10 Xuefu St., Dalian 116622, China (corresponding
author). E-mail: neuxutao@126.com
2
Professor, Center for Rock Instability and Seismicity Research, Dalian
Univ. of Technology, Dalian 116024, Liaoning Province, China. E-mail:
catang@mechsoft.cn
3
Professor, Rock Mechanics Laboratory, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne, ENAC-ICARE-LMR, Station 18, CH-1015 Lausanne,
Switzerland. E-mail: jian.zhao@epfl.ch
Note. This manuscript was submitted on September 29, 2010; approved
on March 24, 2011; published online on March 26, 2011. Discussion period
open until September 1, 2012; separate discussions must be submitted for
individual papers. This paper is part of the International Journal of Geo-
mechanics, Vol. 12, No. 2, April 1, 2012. ©ASCE, ISSN 1532-3641/2012/
2-147–159/$25.00.
further studied the effect of advance rate and the interaction be-
tween tunnel and support. This time-dependent tunnel deformation
leading to inward movement of the tunnel perimeter is often called
ground squeezing (Barla 1995; Einstein 1996). In recent years, ex-
tensive work has been performed by the researchers all over the
world (Bosman et al. 2000; Dalgiç 2002; Gioda and Cividini
1996; Hoek and Marinos 2000; Kontogianni et al. 2008; Phienwej
et al. 2007; Shalabi 2005; Yu 1998). It is generally accepted that in
sheared or faulted rock masses containing mica or clay, creep has
been cited as the prime mechanism causing tunnel squeezing and
the time-dependent increase in ground movement and support load,
leading to inward movement of the tunnel perimeter (Gioda and
Cividini 1996; Malan 2002). Accordingly, the ground movement
can be predicted from the knowledge of creep properties of the
material. Einstein (1996) considers that the squeezing mechanism
can consist of any one or a combination of submechanisms,
namely, creep in the particles of the intact material such as the
grains in rock and soil, creep of individual particles may be because
of viscous behavior of the crystal structure or unstable crack propa-
gation, creep along the interfaces between particles of the intact
material, and creep along larger scale discontinuities such as bed-
ding and foliation surfaces, joints, and faults. In addition, tunnel
ground squeezing is also considered as a consequence of high stress
and yielding of ground around a tunnel (Malan 2002). Along that
line, long-term ground movement can be determined from the long-
term strength of the ground. However, prediction of the time-rate
movement of the ground after the excavation and considering the
yielding effect is not so simple. Therefore, most prediction follows
the viscoelastic or viscoplastic approaches (Pellet et al. 2005; Shi
et al. 2006; Winkel et al. 1972) in which creep is considered as the
behavior controlling the time-dependent response.

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012 / 147

Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 The rheological behavior of rocks commonly observed at engineer-
ing sites and laboratories is that rocks deform at stress changes with
instantaneous strain associated with the elastic response and time-
dependent strain associated with the plastic and viscous response
of the rock, which is commonly described by either the rheological
model or empirical model. The rheological model grouped into the
viscoelastic model and visco-elasto-plastic model has been widely
used to characterize time-dependent deformation of clays and soft
rocks (Goodman 1989; Sakurai 1978; Tomanovic 2006). It is com-
posed of a number of mechanical elements (i.e., spring, dashpot,
and slider) to account for the stiffness, viscous property, and strength
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of the ground. These elements can be connected in various fashions,
such as the Maxwell model, Kelvin model, Kelvin-Voigt model, Bur-
ger model, and others. The mathematical relationship of strain, stress,
and time is then derived directly from the way the elements are con-
nected, and the parameters of the models are obtained from curve-
fitting of creep test data of the material. The rheological models that
are commonly used only give a simple approximation of the strain-
stress time relationship of inhomogeneous rock. To closely describe
the real relationship of inhomogeneous rock, the model would require
a large number of elements (Chang and Yang 1982; Kaiser 1979) that
would in turn result in a complicated mathematical equation having a
large number of parameters that are not so simple to determine. Often,
these parameters have no indication to the rock property. Empirical
creep models are derived directly from the observed relationship of
time, stress, and strain or strain rate of creep test results or in situ rheo-
logical observations. Experimental observations, such as an increase of
dilatancy and hydraulic permeability, a decrease of elastic modulus,
and the recording of acoustic emission, attest that crack propagation
is acting during creep (Chen 2003; Voight 1988). The models are usu-
ally expressed in simple mathematical forms with a small number of
parameters. Empirical models have been successfully used to describe
observed creep behavior of soil and rock. The commonly used em-
pirical creep models include the power law (Amitrano and Helmstetter
2006; Kemeny 1991; Singh 1975; Tsenn and Carter 1987), the expo-
nential law (Cruden 1971), and the hyperbolic law (Yang et al. 1995).
Creep behavior of most rocks is found to be adequately described by
the power law. For clayey soils, weak shale, mudstone, and faulted
rocks, the exponential law and the hyperbolic law are more commonly
used. These empirical laws have been used in developing viscoelastic
solutions for prediction of tunnel closure and ground pressure on
supports.
In this research, the creep deformation of inhomogeneous rock
was simulated by a rheological model using a simple empirical
creep law, and the time-dependent response of tunnel under various
coefficients of lateral pressure was also investigated to study the
creep deformation and damage evolution of tunnels and attempt
to gain an insight into the mechanism of time-dependent behaviors
such as delayed failure of tunnels.
Formulation of Numerical Model
Numerical method is currently the most commonly used method in
the solution of important problems in rock mechanics and engineer-
ing. The rock failure process analysis (RFPA) code is a realistic
failure process analysis code on the basis of damage mechanics
and statistical theory, which can be applied in the fracture process
analysis of rock, concrete, and other brittle materials (Tang and Kou
1998; Tang et al. 2008; Xu et al. 2006; Zhu and Tang 2002). In this
code, the material properties of each element are different from one
other and are specified according to Weibull distribution, which
makes it capable to simulate the nonlinear behavior of distortion
and failure of rock mass. The modified Mohr-Coulomb criterion
with tension cutoff is adopted in this code; thus, characteristics
148 / INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012
Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159
of the brittle-plastic rock can be simulated. The most unique feature
of this code, which makes it totally different from other kind of
numerical code is that it can simulate the whole fracturing process
of initiation, propagation, and coalescence of fractures around
excavation with no need to give assumptions on where and how
fractures and failure will occur. In this paper, the main features
of this model, are first summarized and then incorporating time
dependence in the model is focused on.
In the model, the system is analyzed at a mesolevel, and its
stress-strain relationship can be described with an elastic damage
constitutive law. Continuum damage mechanics can describe the
effects of progressive microcracking, void nucleation, and growth
at high stress levels on constitutive law, making use of a set of state
variables modifying the material behavior at the macroscopic level.
Making use of isotropic continuum damage formulation, the con-
stitutive law for an isotropic and elastic material at instantaneous
loading can be written as (Lemaitre and Chaboche 2001)
1þv v
εij ¼ σij
σkk δ ij ð1Þ
E E
E ¼ E 0 ð1
DÞ ð2Þ
where εij = damaged elastic strain tensor; σij = stress tensor; E and
E0 = elastic modulus of the damaged and the undamaged material,
respectively; D = isotropic damage variable; v = Poisson’s coeffi-
cient; and δ ij = Kronecker symbol.
In the case of a uniaxial state of stress (σ11 ≠ 0, σ22 ¼ σ33 ¼ 0),
the constitutive relation can be rewritten in terms of longitudinal
stress and strain components only as
σ11 ¼ E0 ð1
DÞε11 ð3Þ
Hence, for uniaxial loading, the constitutive law is explicitly
dependent on damage index D only.
The model is on the basis of progressive isotropic elastic damage.
When the stress on an element exceeds a damage threshold,
its elastic modulus E is modified according to Eq. (2). At the
beginning, the element is considered to be elastic and its elastic prop-
erties can be defined by Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio. The
stress-strain curve of the element is considered linear elastic until the
given damage threshold is attained, and then is followed by soften-
ing. In the model, an elastic damage model with constant residual
strength is used. The maximum tensile strain criterion and modified
Mohr-Coulomb criterion with tension cutoff (Brady and Brown
2004; Jeager et al. 2007) are selected as two damage thresholds.
At any event, the tensile strain criterion is preferential because
the tensile strength of rock is far lower than its compressive strength.
Specifically, when the mesoscopic element is under uniaxial tensile
stress, the linear elastic constitutive law with a given specific residual
strength is shown in Fig. 1. No initial damage is incorporated in this
model; at the beginning, the stress-strain curve is linear elastic and no
damage occurs, i.e., D ¼ 0. When the maximum tensile strain cri-
terion is met, the damage of element occurs. In this paper, this kind
of damage is called tensile damage. According to the constitutive law
of mesoscopic element under uniaxial tension as shown in Fig. 1, the
damage evolution of element D can be expressed as
8
<0 ε < εt0
σtr
D ¼ 1
εE εt0 ≤ ε < εtu ð4Þ
: 0
1 ε ≥ εtu
where σtr = residual uniaxial tensile strength; σtr ¼ λσt0 in which λ =
residual strength coefficient and σt0 = the uniaxial tensile strength at
the elastic limit strain (threshold strain) εt0 ; and εtu = ultimate tensile

σc0
σcr
εtu ε t0
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Fig. 1. Elastic damage constitutive law of element under uniaxial compression and tension
strain of the element, which indicates that the element would be com-
pletely damaged when the tensile strain of element attains this ultimate
tensile strain.
It is assumed that the damage of mesoscopic element in the
multiaxial stress field is also isotropic elastic, and therefore the pre-
viously described constitutive law for uniaxial tensile stress can be
extended to three-dimensional stress states. Under multiaxial stress
states, the element still damages in tensile mode when the equiv-
alent strain
ε (Lemaitre and Desmorat 2005) of the combination of
major tensile strain attains the aforementioned threshold strain εt0 .
The constitutive law of element subjected to multiaxial stresses can
be easily obtained only by substituting the strain ε in Eq. (4) with
equivalent strain
ε.
The equivalent strain
ε is defined as follows:
qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi

ε ¼ hε1 i2 þ hε2 i2 þ hε3 i2 ð5Þ
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
where the equivalent strain
ε ¼ hε1 i2 þ hε2 i2 þ hε3 i2 in which
ε1 , ε2 , and ε3 = three principal strains; < > stands for the positive
part of a scalar; and < x >¼ ðx þ jxjÞ=2.
Similarly, the constitutive law is given in Fig. 1 when the
element is under uniaxial compression and damaged in shear mode
according to the Mohr-Coulomb criterion. The damage variable D
can be described as follows:

0 ε > εc0
D ¼ 1
σcr ε ≤ ε
εE0 c0
where σcr = residual uniaxial compressive strength and is defined
as σcr ¼ λσc0 . In the model, it is assumed that σcr =σc0 ¼ σtr =σt0 ¼
λ holds true when the mesoscopic element is under uniaxial com-
pression or tension.
When the element is under multiaxial stress state and satisfies
the Mohr-Coulomb criterion, the shear damage occurs, and the
effect of other principal stress in this model during damage evolu-
tion process is considered. When the Mohr-Coulomb criterion is
met, the maximum compressive principal strain εc0 at the peak
value of minor principal stress is calculated.
 
1 1 þ sin ϕ
εc0 ¼ σc0 þ σ3
μðσ2 þ σ3 Þ ð7Þ
E0 1
sin ϕ
In addition, it is assumed that the damage evolution is only
related to the maximum compressive principal strain ε1 . Therefore,
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012 / 149
Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159
σ
0
σtr
εc0 ε
σt0
the maximum compressive principal strain ε1 of the damaged
element is used to substitute the uniaxial compressive strain ε in
Eq. (6). Thus, the preceding Eq. (6) can be extended to biaxial
or triaxial stress states

0
ε > εc0
D ¼ 1
σcr
ε ≤ ε ð8Þ

εE 0 c0
From the previous derivation of damage variable D, which is
generally called the damage evolution law in damage mechanics,
and Eq. (3), the damaged elastic modulus of element at different
stress or strain levels can be calculated. The unloaded element
keeps its original elastic modulus and strength before strength
threshold. That is to say, the element will elastically unload, and
no residual deformation occurs in the simulation. It must be em-
phasized that when D ¼ 1, it can be calculated from Eq. (3) that
the damaged elastic modulus is 0, which would make the system of
equations ill-posed; therefore, in the model a relatively small num-
ber, i.e. 1:0 × 10
5 , by default is specified to the elastic modulus
under this condition. In addion, it needs to be emphasized that the
damage of elements in tension is preferential to that in shear under
all circumstances because the tensile strength of rock is far lower
than its compressive strength.
In the absence of heterogeneity, the behavior of the model is
entirely homogenous, i.e., no damage localization occurs, and
the local behavior is replicated at the macroscopic scale. Thus,
ð6Þ it is necessary to introduce heterogeneity to obtain a macroscopic
behavior different from those of the elements. To reflect the
material heterogeneity at a mesolevel, the mechanical parameters
including strength and Young’s modulus of the mesoscopic
material elements, which are assumed as homogeneous and iso-
tropic, are assigned randomly from the Weibull statistic distribution
(Weibull 1951) as defined in the following statistic probability
density function:
    m 
m u m
1 u
σðuÞ ¼ exp
ð9Þ
u0 u0 u0
where u = scale parameter of individual element such as strength
or Young’s modulus; the scale parameter u0 is related to the average
of element parameter; and the shape parameter m reflects the degree
of material homogeneity and is defined as homogeneity index.
According to the Weibull distribution and the definition of
homogeneity index, a larger m implies more elements with the
 σt i
σ 0, i
σ∞
0 t
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Fig. 2. Strength degradation law of element
mechanical properties approximated to the mean value and a more
homogeneous material. How the homogeneity index affects the
macroscopic mechanical response of numerical specimens has been
discussed in previous papers (Tang et al. 2000; Tang et al. 2007),
and it is found that the homogeneity index is an important param-
eter of Weibull distribution to control the macroscopic response of
numerical specimen.
As is known, acoustic emission (AE), accompanied by crack
opening, is predominantly related to the release of elastic energy
within the bulk of the brittle disordered materials. One method
of observing microcracking during brittle material deformation
experiments is by monitoring the AE or microseismic events pro-
duced during deformation to detect the onset and the evolution of
stress-induced cracks and analyze the spatial and temporal progres-
sion of microcracks (Knill et al. 1968; Lockner 1993; Ohnaka
1983). Lockner (Lockner 1993; Lockner et al. 1991) has analyzed
catalogs of AE events recorded during loading tests in rock in terms
of the information they give about the accumulated state of damage
in a material. Combining this measured damage state with a model
for the weakening behavior of cracked solids shows that reasonable
predictions of the mechanical behavior are possible. On the basis of
this background knowledge, as an approximation, it is reasonable
to assume that the AE counts are proportional to the number of
damaged elements, and the strain energies released by damaged
elements are all in the form of acoustic emissions (Tang 1997; Tang
et al. 1997). In this model, a single AE event represents a micro-
crack forming event to indirectly assess the damage evolution, and
the AE energy release is related to the strain energy of element be-
fore and after its damage. Therefore, the AE counts are accounted
by the number of damaged elements, and the energy releases are
calculated from the strain energy release of damaged elements. On
the basis of this assumption, the cumulative AE counts, N, and
cumulative AE energy release can be realistically simulated with
the previously discussed numerical model (Tang and Kaiser 1998).
The cumulative damage, D, in a given volume of rock because
of local failures can be defined as the ratio of the volume of failed
rock, V f , to the total volume, V
P as shown in Fig. 2 and expressed as Eq. (13):
V f ve · s1 ni 1 X s
D¼ ¼ ¼ n ð10Þ
V N · ve N 1 i
where ve = volume of single element; s = number of calculation
steps; ni = number of failed elements in the ith step. and N = total
number of elements in the model.
For an elastic-perfectly brittle material, the energy ef released by
the failure of each element can be calculated from the element peak
strength
σ20
ef ¼ v ð11Þ
2E e
150 / INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012
Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159
where σ0 = peak strength of the element; and E = elastic modulus of
element.
The cumulative seismic energy can then be obtained by
X X σ2 ve X σ20
ef ¼ 0
ve ¼ ð12Þ
2E 2 E
Thus, by recording the counts of failed elements, the acoustic
emission or microseismicities associated with the progressive fail-
ure can be simulated in the model that allows elements to fail when
overstressed. In addition, the simulation of crack initiation and
propagation in this investigation is just as the method used in
smeared crack model; the crack is smeared over the whole element,
which has the advantage of leaving the mesh topology untouched.
No special singular element is adopted. When the stress state of
an element meets the damage threshold, the element will damage
in tensile or shear mode. Only when the maximum tensile strain of
the damaged element attains a given ultimate tensile strain, the
damaged element will become totally cracked. One of the main
features of this kind of model is that there is no need for a preex-
isting crack to simulate the crack initiation and propagation. The
numerical model can simulate the initiation, propagation, and coa-
lescence of multiple cracks effectively and easily and this allows
the investigation of the collective behavior of interacting elements
and the emergence of a complex macroscopic behavior.
In recent works (Amitrano and Helmstetter 2006; Pietruszczak
et al. 2004; Shao et al. 2006; Shao et al. 2003), a general method-
ology has been proposed for the description of creep in rocks in
terms of microstructural evolution. As an approach to study the
time-dependent deformation and failure of rock, the constitutive
model for long-term behavior in the model is logically formulated
on the basis of the short-term model. In the model, the time-
dependent behavior of rocks is considered as a macroscopic con-
sequence of evolution of microstructure in element scale in FEM
analysis, whereas the evolution of microstructure is a time-
dependent progressive damage process. On the basis of general
understanding of time-dependent behavior of rocks, a material
degradation law for the description of fundamental behaviors in
heterogeneous rocks in terms of progressive failure on a microscale
was incorporated into the model. Thus, the constitutive model for
long-term behavior is logically formulated by extension of the
short-term model (Shao et al. 2003). In this section, to simulate
the time-dependent behavior of rocks, strength degradation with
time is assumed to be because of the degradation of internal
material properties such as degradation of elastic properties, which
is attributed to microcracking or microfracturing within granite
(Lin et al. 2009), and a material degradation law, an exponential
relation between time-dependent strength of each element and
the time to failure of each element, is introduced to model the fail-
ure of each element when subjected to a constant stress σi (major
stress on this element) smaller than its instantaneous strength σ0;i ,
σti ¼ σ∞ þ ðσ0;i
σ∞ Þe
a1 ti ð13Þ
where σti = time-dependent strength at time t i ; σ∞ = long-term
strength at time t approaching infinite (t i → ∞); σ0;i = initial
instantaneous strength of each element; and a1 = coefficient of
strength degradation of the element. An element fails either when
the time t is equal to its failure time t i or during an avalanche when
the stress σi on this element reaches the rupture criterion σ0;i . The
damage variable, stress, strength, and failure times of all elements
are updated after each failure.
 Letting σ∞ =σ0;i ¼ k, which is defined as the ratio of long-term
strength to instantaneous strength, Eq. (13) can be rewritten as
σti ¼ σ0;i ½k þ ð1
kÞe
a1 ti 
This is the exponential relation between the time to failure of
each element and its normalized stress σi =σ0;i . Further, the Young’s
modulus of each element is assumed to follow the similar degra-
dation law as Eq. (14) incorporated in the model. The system is
loaded by imposing a constant stress σi on its upper boundary.
The simulation stops when the macroscopic strain reaches a thresh-
old, as observed experimentally (Baud and Meredith 1997).
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Eq. (14) can be easily implemented into a numerical integration
algorithm using the finite-element method, with nodal displace-
ments as principal unknowns. By introducing the time-dependent
degradation of material property into the model, the damaged
behavior with time can be obtained. In the model, the element
may degrade and damage gradually with time according to the elas-
tic damage constitutive relationship. The combined interaction of
time-dependent tensile damage and compressive-shear damage
leads to the macroscopic failure of rock material. According to
the general framework described previously, the model can use a
unified approach for the description of both short- and long-term
behavior of rock material. In the following section, the model is
first verified with published uniaxial creep testing data and then
creep tests on rock at different stress levels under uniaxial loading
conditions were carried out. In the end, the time-dependent damage
and deformation of rock tunnel under various coefficients of lateral
Table 1. Physicomechanical Parameters of Model Specimens
Elastic
Homogeneity Uniaxial compressive modulus Poisson’s
Rock index strength (MPa) (GPa)
Marble 2 640 95
Red 2 188 24
sandstone
0.6
0.5
0.4
Strain/%
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0 0.5 1 1.5
Fig. 3. Comparison of simulated creep curves and experimental creep curves
Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159
pressure were investigated. The model was found to have the
capability to describe basic behaviors of creep tests, which leads
to more realistic modeling of the time-dependent behavior of the
ð14Þ fracture behavior in hard or brittle rocks.
Validation of the Model
The published uniaxial creep testing data on rock respectively
carried out by Li and Xia (2000) was chosen for the validation
of the rheological model in this paper. In the tests carried out
by Li and Xia (2000), two kinds of rocks, marble and red sandstone
from Emei Mountain in the Sichuan province, China, were respec-
tively chosen in the study of the creep laws by Li and Xia. Marble is
a brittle hard rock with a uniaxial compressive strength of 120 MPa
and an ultimate axial strain of 0.23%. As a medium strength rock,
red sandstone has a uniaxial compressive strength of approximately
60 MPa and an ultimate axial strain of 0.67%. The red sandstone
material was dense and had no macroscopic flaw. The rock samples
were cut into 50 × 50 × 100 specimens. In addition, the elastic
moduli and the Poisson’s ratio of the marble, 70 GPa and 0.25, and
red sandstone, 17 GPa and 0.3, were retrieved from published lit-
erature (Wu and Zhang 2003) for the sequent numerical simulation.
The stress levels applied on the marble and red sandstone were
respectively 90 and 44 MPa, both 75% of the uniaxial compressive
strength of the rock. On the basis of the experimental configuration
conducted by Li and Xia, a similar numerical model was set up to
perform the uniaxial creep tests at the 75% constant stress level of
uniaxial compressive strength. Before the numerical simulation
was performed, the mechanical parameters, such as the mean
uniaxial compressive strength of the elements for the model speci-
men, were approximately estimated and tested with trial and error
on the basis of the macroscopic mechanical parameters of the rock
ratio specimen and the statistical distribution relationship between
0.25 mechanical parameters of elements at a mesoscale and mechanical
0.3
parameters of rock specimen on a macroscale. The physicomechan-
ical parameters of the model specimen are listed in Table 1. The
mean uniaxial compressive strength, mean elastic modulus, and
Experimental curve
Simulated curve
Red sandstone
Marble
2 2.5 3 3.5 4
3
Time/×10 s
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012 / 151
 mean Poisson’s ratio of the elements on a mesoscale listed in
Table 1 represent the macromechanical properties of the rock speci-
men in the test. The ratio of long-term strength of instantaneous
strength and the coefficient of degradation of the element in the
Table 2. Physicomechanical Parameters of Numerical Model
Item
Homogeneity index
Mean uniaxial compressive strength (MPa)
Mean Young’s modulus (MPa)
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simulations were chosen with trial and error to be 0.8 and 0.05,
respectively. The simulated strain versus time curve and the exper-
imental strain versus time curve for the marble and red sandstone
were plotted in Fig. 3. It is shown in Fig. 3 that simulated strain
versus time curves are in good agreement with the experimental
strain versus time curves. Furthermore, three regimes of rock creep
Specimen in uniaxial compression, viz, primary, secondary, and tertiary creep
1.5
regimes observed in laboratory are clearly visualized in the simu-
200
lations. With the comparison between the experiment results and
numerical simulations, it can be found that the rheological model
60,000
proposed in this paper is suitable to reproduce the entire process

Poisson ratio 0.25

of deformation and failure and investigate the rheological behav-
Ratio of uniaxial compressive strength to uniaxial tensile strength 10
ior of inhomogeneous rocks and time-dependent response of
Frictional angle (degrees) 30
tunnels.
-4
6.0x10 -4 120 8.0x10 200
Axial strain Axial strain
AE counts -4 AE counts
7.0x10
5.0x10 -4 100
-4
6.0x10 150
-4
4.0x10 80 -4
5.0x10
Axial strain

Axial strain

AE counts
AE counts
-4
3.0x10 -4 60 4.0x10 100

-4
3.0x10
2.0x10 -4 40
-4
2.0x10 50
-4
1.0x10 20 -4
1.0x10

0.0 0 0.0 0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
(a) Normalized time (b) Normalized time
-4
8.0x10 250 1.4x10
-3
500

-4 Axial strain
7.0x10 -3
1.2x10 AE counts
Axial strain 200
-4
400
6.0x10 AE counts
-3
1.0x10
-4
5.0x10
Axial strain
Axial strain

AE counts

150 300

AE counts
-4
8.0x10
-4
4.0x10
-4
-4 100 6.0x10 200
3.0x10
-4
-4 4.0x10
2.0x10
50 100
-4 -4
1.0x10 2.0x10

0.0 0 0.0 0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3
(c) Normalized time (d) Normalized time

-3
1.5x10 1200

Axial strain
-3
AE counts 1000
1.2x10

800
-4
Axial strain

AE counts

9.0x10
600
-4
6.0x10
400

-4
3.0x10 200

0.0 0
0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20
(e) Normalized time

Fig. 4. Numerically obtained creep and AE curves at: (a) 20; (b) 24; (c) 25; (d) 27; (e) 28 MPa

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Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 Modeling of Creep Tests
A series of creep tests in terms of uniaxial compression under vari-
ous constant stress levels were performed using the numerical
model described previously. Numerical simulation of the long-
term loading tests consisted of two stages: initial loading and con-
stant loading. In the initial loading stage, the specimen was axially
loaded to the predetermined stress level. The constant loading stage
was then started. The load was maintained at the predetermined
stress level until the specimen stabilized for a long time or failed.
The physicomechanical parameters used in the model are listed in
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stationary, and increasing strain rate. During the primary phase re-
gime, the strain rate, acoustic emission activity, and energy release
rate decay with time approximately as a power law for the strain
rate in creep experiments. In the secondary creep regime, the acous-
tic emission activity and energy release rate levels off, and the axial
strain rate remains approximately constant. After the secondary
creep regime, viz., during the tertiary phase, the acoustic emission
activity and the energy release rate accelerates rapidly with time
because of interactions among elements and increasing damage
induced by degradation, and the axial strain rate accelerates gradu-
ally until the specimen fails. The steady-state creep stage in which

the Table 2. The short-term uniaxial compressive strength of the the creep rate is constant is sustained for a longer time, and this
rock specimen with the physicomechanical parameters listed in corresponds to the lower stress level. For the higher stress level,
Table 2 is 30 MPa on the basis of the simulations on the model however, the acceleration stage in which the creep rate increases
specimen in uniaxial compression. In addition, for the simulation
leading to specimen localized damage and collapse usually happens
of time-dependent responses, the ratio of long-term strength of
instantaneous strength and the coefficient of degradation of the
element are the same as those of the rock specimen for model 3.5x10
-3
20MPa
validation, viz., 0.8 and 0.05, respectively. The various constant 24MPa
stress levels 20, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28 MPa are respectively applied 3.0x10
-3
25MPa
on the rock specimens on the basis of the simulated short-term 26MPa
27MPa
uniaxial compressive strength, 30 MPa, of the rock specimen. 2.5x10
-3

Figs. 4–6 show numerically obtained axial strain and AE counts

Release energy (J)

curves, accumulative energy release, and creep curves up to final 2.0x10
-3

stabilization or failure as a function of normalized time for different

constant stress levels, respectively. Under the continuous applica- 1.5x10
-3

tion of constant stress, rock specimens deform gradually and rup-

ture when stress is sustained for some time, as shown schematically 1.0x10
-3

in Fig. 4(d). The time interval between the beginning of loading and
the occurrence of fracture is called “fracturing time”. For the same 5.0x10
-4

rock material, the fracturing time varies considerably for each

specimen at different applied stress levels. This is a noticeable fea- 0.0
ture of the brittle fracture of heterogeneous rock materials because 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
Normalized time
brittle fracture is a stochastic process. The different patterns of AE
activity shown in Fig. 4 are typical examples in which the fracturing Fig. 6. Numerically simulated cumulative energy release curves
time is different. Under lower constant stress levels, the processes
of deformation and AE activity only consist of the transient creep
stage and the steady-state creep stage (also called secondary creep
or stationary creep), as shown in Fig. 4(a)–4(c). However, under
higher constant stress levels, the processes of deformation and
AE activity consist of the transient creep stage, the steady creep
stage, and the tertiary creep stage (also called accelerating creep),
as shown in Fig. 4(d), characterized respectively by decreasing,

1.5
20MPa
24MPa
25MPa
1.2 26MPa
27MPa
Axial strain (10 )
-3

0.9

0.6

0.3

0.0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
Normalized time

Fig. 5. Numerically simulated creep curves Fig. 7. Numerical model for rock tunnel

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Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 Table 3. Physicomechanical Parameters of the Tunnel Model in a short time. It is common in observation that after the creep rate
Rock increases slightly, the specimen fractures and collapses. It is shown
Item mass in Figs. 4–6 that the higher the applied constant stress levels, the
more the amount of acoustic emission events, and the accumulative
Homogeneity index 2
energy release occurred in the primary creep regime and the tertiary
Compressive strength (MPa) 100
creep regime. The model correctly describes the instantaneous
Elastic modulus (GPa) 50
response, transient deformation, stationary state, and unstable
Possion’s ratio 0.25
stage.
Density ð103 kg=m3 Þ 2.7
It can be found that the general trend is that strain rate increases
Ratio of uniaxial compressive strength to uniaxial tensile strength 10
with increasing stress. The strain rate increases with increasing
Angle of friction (degrees) 30
stress, and accelerated stage creep is developed before failure. It
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Ratio of long-term strength to instantaneous strength 0.8 follows that the deformation starts with a high deformation rate that
Coefficient of strength degradation 0.05 decreases continuously until it reaches the stationary creep rate.

Fig. 8. (a) Associated compressive stress fields; (b) tensile stress fields; (c) locations of failed elements at k ¼ 0:67 (P1 ¼ 10 MPa; P2 ¼ 15 MPa)

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Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 With the degradation of material properties, the tertiary creep phase
comes into being. The tertiary creep phase begins with an increas-
ing strain rate and finally ends in creep failure of the rock specimen.
The creep strain curves of all specimens, shown in Fig. 5, all go
through the previously discussed three stages, but there are definite
differences in their duration.
Modeling of Time-Dependent Response of Tunnels
Numerical Model
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the time-dependent response of tunnels under various coefficients
of lateral pressure, in which the constant horizontal stress P1 and
vertical stress P2 are respectively applied on the model. The diam-
eter of the tunnel is 5 m, and the model is divided into 90,000
elements. Three cases are considered in the model; three coeffi-
cients of lateral pressure (viz, the ratios of horizontal stress P1 to
vertical stress P2 ), 0.67, 1.0, and 1.3, are respectively used, in
which the vertical stress P2 , 15 MPa, is kept constant; and the hori-
zontal stresses P1 for the three cases are 10, 15, and 20 MPa,
respectively. The homogeneity index of the tunnel model is 2,
and the ratio of long-term strength to instantaneous strength and the

A numerical model with a simple geometry of 30 × 30 m of a rock coefficient of strength degradation are 0.8 and 0.05, respectively.
tunnel after excavation shown in Fig. 7 is designed to simulate The physical and mechanical parameters of the tunnel model are

Fig. 9. (a) Associated compressive stress fields; (b) tensile stress fields; (c) locations of failed elements at k ¼ 1:0 (P1 ¼ 15 MPa; P2 ¼ 15 MPa)

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012 / 155

Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 shown in Table 3. The mechanical parameters, such as elastic
modulus and strength, assigned in the Table 3 are the mechanical
parameters of the elements in the model at the mesoscale instead
of those of the model at the macroscopic scale (Tang et al.
2000, 2007).
Modeling Results
The simulated compressive stress fields, tensile stress fields, and
failure pattern of the tunnels after excavation under various coef-
ficients of lateral pressure are respectively shown in Figs. 8–10. It
is shown in Figs. 8–10 that high stress concentration forms around
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deformation and damage occurs in tunnel sidewalls around rock
mass under the low coefficient of lateral pressure (0.67), as shown
in Fig. 8, in which the concentrated compressive and tensile
stresses and the location of the failed elements at 1 day and 30 days
are represented, whereas creep deformation and damage occurs in
the rock mass at the roof and floor of the tunnel under the high
coefficient of lateral pressure (1.33), as shown in Fig. 10, in which
the concentrated compressive and tensile stresses and the location
of the failed elements at 1 day and 30 days are represented. Under
the hydrostatic pressure of the coefficient of lateral pressure (1.0),
damage randomly occurs and damage localization forms and fail-

the tunnel. Under the different coefficients of lateral pressure, ure occurs at the weak zone of the tunnel, as shown in Fig. 9, in
the tunnel exhibits different damage and failure patterns. Creep which the concentrated compressive and tensile stresses and the

Fig. 10. (a) Associated compressive stress fields; (b) tensile stress fields; (c) locations of failed elements at k ¼ 1:3 (P1 ¼ 20 MPa; P2 ¼ 15 MPa)

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Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 location of the failed elements at 1 day and 30 days are represented.
In addition, the gray color and white color shown in the location of
the failed elements analog to AE in Figs. 8–10 indicate the tensile
damage and compressive damage, respectively, which indicates
that both compressive and tensile failure occurs in the weakest part
of the rock mass.
Tunnel wall convergence measurements are the most practical
field observations made during the construction of a tunnel. Con-
sequently, tunnel closure displacements are made in the simula-
tions. Fig. 11 gives the time-dependent deformation of the tunnel
wall along the horizontal direction under three coefficients of
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equilibrium is disturbed. Tunnel wall displacements obviously in-
crease at the early stage because of the disturbance of the state of
stress equilibrium; thereafter, the closure of tunnel gradually stabil-
izes, which is primarily because of the time-dependent properties of
the rock mass under ground pressure. The time-dependent effects
dominate in the final tunnel closure with no additional disturbance
to the rock mass. A local failure can influence the closure in any
direction; although the measured tunnel wall deformation is not
sufficient to determine a failure mode, it allows the existence of
a failure to be detected.

lateral pressure: 1.33, 1.0, and 0.67. It is shown in Fig. 11 that

the time-dependent deformation of the tunnel wall along the hori-
zontal direction is directly proportional to the coefficients of lateral
pressure, which indicates the time-dependent response of a tunnel
will be directly related to the stress states in the surrounding rock
mass under comparable conditions. In other words, for the coeffi-
cients of lateral pressure differing from unity, tunnel closure will be
a maximum in the maximum principal stress direction and a mini-
mum perpendicular to it. In addition, Fig. 12 presents the tunnel
closure rate curve varying with time for three different coefficients
of lateral pressure. It can be found that the tunnel closure displace-
ment increases sharply at the early stage of excavation and gradu-
ally stabilizes at a constant deformation rate. Primarily because
of that, when a tunnel is driven through a rock mass, the state of
0.12 k=1
k=0.67
0.1 k=1.33
Tunnel closure (%)
Conclusions
In this paper, an empirical exponential creep law is applied to sim-
ulate the rheological behavior of inhomogeneous rock and associ-
ated time-dependent response of tunnels. Comparisons are made
between the tests, data and numerical results of rock creep, and
the results are in good agreement. The primary and tertiary creep
regimes associated respectively with degradation and increase of
the rate of strain, damage event, and energy release were observed
in the simulations. Damage localization emerges at the transition
between primary and tertiary creep when damage rate starts accel-
erating, which indicates that the macroscopic creep failure is
induced by clusters of microstructure damage evolution at a mes-
oscale. The delayed failure process of tunnels in various lateral
pressures was simulated, and the progressive damage evolution
process was numerically visualized. Numerical simulations on
time-dependent response of tunnels show that creep deformation
and damage occurs in tunnel sidewalls around rock mass under the
coefficient of lateral pressure less than unity, whereas creep defor-

0.08 mation and damage occurs in the rock mass at the roof and floor of
the tunnel under the coefficient of lateral pressure larger than unity.
0.06 Under the hydrostatic pressure of the coefficient of lateral pressure
equal to unity, creep deformation and damage randomly occurs and
0.04 damage localization forms and failure occurs at the weak zone of
the tunnel. Furthermore, tunnel closure displacements of the tunnel
0.02 wall along the horizontal direction under three coefficients of
lateral pressure are direct proportional to the coefficients of lateral
0 pressure. Tunnel closure will be a maximum in the maximum prin-
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Time (days) cipal stress direction and a minimum perpendicular to it for the
coefficients of lateral pressure differing from unity. Tunnel wall
Fig. 11. Tunnel closure versus time curves under three coefficients of displacements obviously increase at the early stage because of the
lateral pressure disturbance of the state of stress equilibrium; thereafter, the closure
of the tunnel gradually stabilizes, and the time-dependent effects
dominate in the final tunnel closure without additional disturbance
to the rock mass. The simulations show that the rheological model
0.04 is appropriate to investigate the nonlinear complicated failure of
k=1
0.035 k=0.67 inhomogeneous rocks. The previous numerical results on time-
k=1.33 dependent properties, including the three creep regimes and asso-
Tunnel closure rate (day-1)

0.03 ciated time-dependent response of rock tunnels, show that the

0.025
model used in this paper is suitable to investigate the rheological
behavior of inhomogeneous rocks and associated time-dependent
0.02 response of rock tunnels. Meanwhile, it offers some important
theoretical indications and practical instructions to investigate
0.015
the instability failure mechanisms of engineering rock mass struc-
0.01 tures and take some precautions to prevent the occurrences of rock
hazards in underground rock engineering.
0.005

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Acknowledgments
Time (days)
The joint supports provided by NSFC (Grant No. 41172265 and
Fig. 12. Tunnel closure rate versus time curves under three coefficients
50874020), the National Basic Research Program of China
of lateral pressure
(2007CB209400), the Sino-Swiss Science and Technology

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMECHANICS © ASCE / MARCH/APRIL 2012 / 157

Int. J. Geomech., 2012, 12(2): 147-159

 Cooperation Program (EG22-032009), the opening fund of the
State Key Laboratory of Geohazard Prevention and Geoenviron-
ment Protection (SKLGP2012K008), International Cooperation
Project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant
No. 50820125405), and the Scientific Research Foundation for
Returned Scholars, Ministry of Education of China, are highly
acknowledged.
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