The Effect of Pressure, Temperature, and Loading Rate on the Mechanical Properties of Rocks

The influence of confining pressure, pore-fluid pressure, temperature, and rate of loading on the strength and ductility of rocks is reviewed in this paper. Effects of pressure and temperature on the mechanical behavior of a large variety of rock types have been studied by means of triaxial compression tests, and indentation experiments have been used to evaluate the influence of loading rates at ambient temperature and pressure. Data relating the combined effects of all of these variables over a wide range of values are not available; therefore. the effects of independent variations of pressure, temperature, and loading rate are considered in detail and interactions between these parameters are evaluated under limited conditions.