Mudrocks as Soft Rocks: Properties and Characteristics

Jeremias, Filipe Telmo; Olarte, Juan Montero; Pinho, António; Duarte, Isabel; Saroglou, H.; Suárez, Mario Camilo Torres

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-29477-9_4

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…The definition of slaking is slightly changing in the literature, but generally indicates a form of rock disintegration resulted from the direct interaction with water in liquid and/or vapor state (e.g., partial contact or immersion, alternate wetting/drying, exposure to air humidity) [76,77]. Taya stone turned out to have a surprisingly low slake durability.…”

Section: Slake Durabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Taya Caves, a Buddhist marvel hidden in underground Japan: stone properties, deterioration, and environmental setting

Germinario

Oguchi

Tamura³

et al. 2020

Herit Sci

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The Buddhist sacred site of Taya Caves is a gem hidden underground in Yokohama, Japan. The caves were excavated and sculpted into bare rock by Shingon Buddhist monks from the Kamakura until the Edo period (thirteenth-nineteenth century), and dedicated to ascetic training, rituals, and pilgrimage. They are a maze of halls and galleries decorated with hundreds of rock-cut reliefs, picturing deities and masters of Buddhism, temples and shrines, real and fantastic animals, vegetal motifs, mandalas, zodiac signs, family crests, etc. The history and rock art of Taya Caves and the urge to preserve their cultural value led to this first-ever scientific investigation, dealing with the stone properties, deterioration, and environmental setting. Textural, mineralogical, geochemical, and petrophysical investigations were combined with a microclimate monitoring and chemical analyses of groundwater and rainwater. The caves are excavated into a clay-rich fossiliferous siltstone, extremely soft and porous and highly susceptible to water-driven weathering. Water represents a constant in Taya Caves, either flowing, dripping, and stagnant; or rising from the subsoil; or related to the extremely high relative humidity. Crusts and efflorescences represent important indicators of mineral dissolution and mobilization. The crusts are made of gypsum, crystallized from the dissolution of calcareous bioclasts and oxidation of pyrite, with minor calcite. The efflorescences are composed of chlorides, phosphates, sulfates, and carbonates, possibly deriving from agrochemicals and the surface vegetation cover. The salt weathering is strictly related to the microenvironmental variables and physico-chemical properties of the phases and waters involved. Rock-water interaction is particularly damaging even considering just the physical mechanisms. The stone is strongly sensitive to water absorption, hygroscopic adsorption, and slaking: the stresses generated by in-pore water and air movement and the swelling clay minerals may lead to rapid disintegration, especially during cyclic processes. This research is expected to raise concerns about the safeguard of Taya Caves and support future monitoring and conservation plans, and to foster a wider promotion and valorization of this heritage site.

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Section: Slake Durabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Taya Caves, a Buddhist marvel hidden in underground Japan: stone properties, deterioration, and environmental setting

Germinario

Oguchi

Tamura³

et al. 2020

Herit Sci

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show abstract

“…However, due to the sensitivity of clay-rich materials to changes in stress and moisture content, the processes of sampling and preparation for testing may have a serious impact on the results these reveal. A particular issue is that tests may only be performed on the more durable materials, which will impart an over-estimated view of mudrock geotechnical performance in civil engineering works [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laboratory Testing and Classification of Mudrocks: A Review

Jeremias

Cripps

2023

Geotechnics

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Mudrocks are fine-grained clay-rich rocks that comprise different lithotypes forming more than 60% of all sedimentary rocks, and thus, they occur frequently in engineering projects either as natural ground or as made ground. These rocks may display a range of engineering behaviours controlled mostly by their composition and structural features. Due to rapid breakdown and susceptibility to volume changes, they may cause problems both during and after construction. Research into the susceptibility of mudrocks to breakdown aims to predict problematic behaviour and provide guidance for avoiding or mitigating these effects. Low-durability materials that disintegrate during sampling and testing can be especially difficult to assess. The paper reviews laboratory techniques for mudrock characterization as well as describes geological and engineering geological classification schemes generally used to describe and classify these materials. The value of some of the tests and determinations in the evaluation of a series of mudrock data taken from the literature is presented.

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Mudrocks as Soft Rocks: Properties and Characteristics

Cited by 2 publications

References 36 publications

Taya Caves, a Buddhist marvel hidden in underground Japan: stone properties, deterioration, and environmental setting

Taya Caves, a Buddhist marvel hidden in underground Japan: stone properties, deterioration, and environmental setting

Laboratory Testing and Classification of Mudrocks: A Review

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