The Mechanical Behavior of Salt X

Abstract

Cover illustration: Microstructure of naturally deformed rock salt from the Avery Island salt dome, Louisiana, U.S.A. (images contributed by C.J. Spiers).The gold-colored image (long-side scale ~0.8 mm) is a ����� light micrograph of a polished and etched section showing the internal subgrain structure within a single salt grain in the rock. The subgrains plus ��= stress vs. subgrain size relations for salt indicate that deformation involved a component of dislocation creep at a deviatoric stress around 1 MPa.The blue image (long-side scale 3 mm) is a transmitted light micrograph of a thin section of Avery Island salt that was g-irradiated to reveal the internal microstructure through radiation damage (precipitation of sodium nano-particles). The section shows evidence for both subgrains and asymmetric crystal overgrowth features (clear zones), suggesting that deformation involved not only dislocation creep but also dissolution-precipitation processes, such as grain boundary migration and/or pressure solution.All papers published in this volume were peer-reviewed before publication. Original papers and original reviews of previous work were accepted. The Organizing Committee is not responsible for the statements made or for the opinions expressed in this volume.