EXPERIMENTAL ROCK MECHANICS treats fundamental rock mechanics aspects which are pertinent to the areas of tectonophysics and seismology. It is clearly focused on the fracture and flow of rocks under stress and their geophysical and seismological implications.

Experimental Rock Mechanics exclusively addresses the deformation and fracture of rock specimens under general triaxial compression, in which all three principal stresses are different. The results of the effect of the intermediate principal stress are provided in great detail, both in graphic and numerical form. Although this effect has been neglected or disregarded by'Other strength theories, the current work shows that it significantly affects the ultimate strength of rocks and supports the fact that the intermediate principal stress strongly influences the deformation and failure mode of rocks. Accordingly, new failure criteria are proposed. In these studies, the effect of the intrinsic features of rock'masses of inhomogeneous or anisotropic structure are taken into account. Furthermore, acoustic emission phenomena in rocks under various stress states and friction in rocks, measured by a newly designed shear testing machine, are discussed in relation to earthquake phenomena.

This book is intended for specialists in Rock Mechanics, Tectonophysics and Seismology. It is the account of 30 years of investigation by the author and his team of the mechanical behaviour of rocks.