Discontinuity

• A Discontinuity is
associated with weak
planes/surfaces within a
rock mass. It is the
collective term for
joints, weak bedding
planes, weak schistosity
planes, weakness zones
and faults.
 Discontinuity Sets
• Discontinuities do not occur at completely random
orientations: they occur for good mechanical reasons with
some degree of “clustering” around preferred orientations
associated with the formation mechanisms. Hence, it is
convenient to consider the concept of discontinuity set (which
consists of parallel or sub-parallel discontinuities) and the
number of such sets that characterize a particular rock mass
geometry.
 Orientation

• Attitude of discontinuity in space. Described

by the dip direction α(azimuth) and dip ψ of
steepest declination in the plane of
discontinuity. Example: dip direction/dip
(015°/35°)
 Spacing

• Distance between adjacent discontinuity

intesections with the measuring scanline.
Frequency (i.e. the number per unit
distance) is the reciprocal of spacing(i.e. the
mean of these intersection distances).
 Persistence

• Implies the areal extent or size of a

discontinuity within a plane. It can be crudely
quantified by observing the discontinuity trace
lengths on the surface of exposures. It is one of
the most important rock mass parameters, but
one of the most difficult to quantify in
anything but crude terms.
 Roughness
• Roughness of discontinuity
walls can be characterised by
a waviness (large scale
undulations which, if
interlocked and in contact,
cause dilation during shear
displacement) and by small
scale roughness that tends to
be damaged during shearing .
Typical roughness profiles and suggested
nomenclature
 Wall strength
• It is the compressive strength of the rock
comprising the walls of a discontinuity. It is a
very important component of shear strength
and deformability, especially if the walls are in
direct rock to rock contact as in the case of
unfilled joints.
 Aperture
• Is the perpendicular
distance separating the
adjacent rock walls of an
open discontinuity, in
which the intervening
space is air or water
filled.
 Filling

• Is the term for material separating the adjacent

rock walls of discontinuities, e.g. calcite,
chlorite, clay, silt, fault gouge, breccia, etc.
• The perpendicular distance between the
adjacent rock walls is termed the width of the
filled discontinuity.
 Seepage
• Water seepage through rock masses results
mainly from flow through water conducting
discontinuities (secondary permeability).
Rock Mass Classification
 Rock Mass
• A complex system of natural rock material
comprised of blocks of intact rock and
structural features (discontinuities) that
allow for interactions among the blocks;
too large and complex to sample and test
in the lab.
 Rock Mass Classification
• During the feasibility and preliminary design
stages of a project, when very little detailed
information is available on the rock mass and
its stress and hydrologic characteristics, the
use of a rock mass classification scheme can
be of considerable benefit.
Different classification systems place different emphases
on the various parameters, and it is recommended that at
least two methods be used at any site during the early
stages of a project.

Rock Mass Classification systems

1. Terzaghi's rock mass classification
2. Rock quality designation (RQD)
3. Rock Structure Rating (RSR)
4. Rock Mass Rating (RMR)
5. Rock Tunnelling Quality Index, Q
6. Geological Strength Index GSI System
 1. Terzaghi's rock mass classification
Terzaghi's descriptions (quoted directly from his
paper) are:
• Intact rock contains neither joints nor hair cracks. Hence, if it
breaks, it breaks across sound rock. On account of the injury
to the rock due to blasting, spalls may drop off the roof several
hours or days after blasting. This is known as a spalling
condition. Hard, intact rock may also be encountered in the
popping condition involving the spontaneous and violent
detachment of rock slabs from the sides or roof.
• Stratified rock consists of individual strata with little or no
resistance against separation along the boundaries between the
strata. The strata may or may not be weakened by transverse
joints. In such rock the spalling condition is quite common.

• Moderately jointed rock contains joints and hair cracks, but the
blocks between joints are locally grown together or so intimately
interlocked that vertical walls do not require lateral support. In
rocks of this type, both spalling and popping conditions may be
encountered.

• Blocky and seamy rock consists of chemically intact or almost

intact rock fragments which are entirely separated from each
other and imperfectly interlocked. In such rock, vertical walls
may require lateral support.
• Crushed but chemically intact rock has the character of
crusher run. If most or all of the fragments are as small as fine
sand grains and no recementation has taken place, crushed
rock below the water table exhibits the properties of a water-
bearing sand.
• Squeezing rock slowly advances into the tunnel without
perceptible volume increase. A prerequisite for squeeze is a
high percentage of microscopic and sub-microscopic particles
of micaceous minerals or clay minerals with a low swelling
capacity.
• Swelling rock advances into the tunnel chiefly on account of
expansion. The capacity to swell seems to be limited to those
rocks that contain clay minerals such as montmorillonite, with
a high swelling capacity.
 2. Rock quality designation (RQD)

• The Rock Quality

Designation index (RQD)
was developed by Deere
(Deere et al 1967) to
provide a quantitative
estimate of rock mass
quality from drill core logs.
• RQD is defined as the
percentage of intact core
pieces longer than 100 mm
(4 inches) in the total length
of core.
• RQD is a directionally dependent parameter and its
value may change significantly, depending upon the
borehole orientation. The use of the volumetric joint
count can be quite useful in reducing this directional
dependence.
• The correct procedures for measurement of the length
of core pieces and the calculation of RQD are
summarised in Figure.
• Palmström (1982) suggested that, when no core is available
but discontinuity traces are visible in surface exposures or
exploration adits, the RQD may be estimated from the number
of discontinuities per unit volume. The suggested relationship
for clay-free rock masses is:
RQD = 115 - 3.3 Jv
• where Jv is the sum of the number of joints per unit length for
all joint (discontinuity) sets known as the volumetric joint
count.
• When using Palmström's relationship for exposure mapping,
blast induced fractures should not be included when estimating
Jv.
• RQD is intended to represent the rock mass quality in situ.
When using diamond drill core, care must be taken to ensure
that fractures, which have been caused by handling or the
drilling process, are identified and ignored when determining
the value of RQD.
Rock mass Quality RQD
Very poor 0– 25
Poor 25 – 50
Fair 50 – 75
Good 75 – 90
Excellent 90 - 100
 3. Rock Structure Rating (RSR)
• Wickham et al (1972) described a quantitative
method for describing the quality of a rock mass and
for selecting appropriate support on the basis of their
Rock Structure Rating (RSR) classification.
• The significance of the RSR system is that it
introduced the concept of rating each of the
components listed below to arrive at a numerical
value of
RSR = A + B + C.
Parameter A, Geology: General appraisal of
geological structure on the basis of:
a. Rock type origin (igneous, metamorphic,
sedimentary).
b. Rock hardness (hard, medium, soft, decomposed).
c. Geologic structure (massive, slightly faulted/folded,
moderately faulted/folded, intensely faulted/folded).
Parameter B, Geometry: Effect of discontinuity
pattern with respect to the direction of the tunnel
drive on the basis of:
a. Joint spacing.
b. Joint orientation (strike and dip).
c. Direction of tunnel drive.
Parameter C: Effect of groundwater inflow and joint
condition on the basis of:
a. Overall rock mass quality on the basis of A and B
combined.
b. Joint condition (good, fair, poor).
c. Amount of water inflow (in gallons per minute per
1000 feet of tunnel).

• Three tables from Wickham et al's 1972 paper are

reproduced in Tables 1, 2 and 3. These tables can be
used to evaluate the rating of each of these parameters
to arrive at the RSR value (maximum RSR = 100).
 4. Rock Mass Rating (RMR)

• Bieniawski (1976) published the details of a rock mass

classification called the Geomechanics Classification or the
Rock Mass Rating (RMR) system.
• The following six parameters are used to classify a rock mass
using the RMR system:
1. Uniaxial compressive strength of rock material.
2. Rock Quality Designation (RQD).
3. Spacing of discontinuities.
4. Condition of discontinuities.
5. Groundwater conditions.
6. Orientation of discontinuities.
• The Rock Mass Rating system is presented in Table,
giving the ratings for each of the six parameters listed
above. These ratings are summed to give a value of
RMR.
 5. Rock Tunnelling Quality Index, Q
• On the basis of an evaluation of a large number of
case histories of underground excavations, Barton et
al (1974) of the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute
proposed a Tunnelling Quality Index (Q) for the
determination of rock mass characteristics and
tunnel support requirements. The numerical value of
the index Q varies on a logarithmic scale from 0.001
to a maximum of 1,000 and is defined by:

 RQD   Jr   Jw 
Q   
 Jn   Ja   SRF 
Where,
• RQD = Rock Quality Designation 100 - 10
• Jn = Joint set number 1 – 20
• Jr = Joint roughness factor 4 -1
• Ja = Joint alteration and clay fillings 1 – 20
• Jw = Joint water inflow or pressure 1 – 0.1
• SRF = stress reduction factor 1 – 20
It appears that the rock tunnelling quality Q can now be
considered to be a function of only three parameters
which are crude measures of:

• 1. Block size (RQD/Jn)

• 2. Inter-block shear strength (Jr/ Ja)
• 3. Active stress (Jw/SRF)
Rock mass quality rating according to Q values
 Practical use of Q system
• In relating the value of the index Q to the stability
and support requirements of underground
excavations, Barton et al (1974) defined an additional
parameter which they called the Equivalent
Dimension, De, of the excavation. This dimension is
obtained by dividing the span, diameter or wall
height of the excavation by a quantity called the
Excavation Support Ratio, ESR. Hence:
Excavation Support Ratio (ESR) for various tunnel
categories
Estimated support categories based on the tunnelling quality index Q
6. Geological Strength Index GSI System
• The Geological Strength Index (GSI) was introduced by Hoek
in 1994. It was aimed to estimate the reduction in rock mass
strength for different geological conditions.
• Method to link the constants m and s of Hoek-Brown
failure criterion to observations in the field. ie: a possible
solution to the problem of estimating strength of jointed
rockmass.
• A system for estimating the reduction in rockmass
strength for different geological conditions
• Overcomes deficiencies of RMR for poor quality rock
Geological Strength Index (GSI)
Rock mass classes determined from GSI
 Examples of estimating GSI is given below, with the
same rock masses used previously to estimate RMR and
Q.
• Granite rock mass containing 3 joint sets, average RQD is
88%, average joint spacing is 0.24 m, joint surfaces are
generally stepped and rough, tightly closed and
unweathered with occasional stains observed, the
excavation surface is wet but not dripping, average rock
material uniaxial compressive strength is 160 MPa, the
tunnel is excavated to 150 m below the ground where no
abnormal high in situ stress is expected. Refer to the GSI
chart, Rock Mass Structure for the above granite is blocky,
and Joint Surface Condition is very good. Therefore GSI
is 75±5. The rock mass is classified as good to very good
quality.