Abstract
One of the most obvious and direct consequences of the presence of discontinuities in a rock mass is the creation of discrete blocks of rock, which can range in volume from a few cubic millimetres to many cubic metres. Those blocks that lie adjacent to an existing, or a planned, free rock face have the potential to fall, to slide or to topple from the face. In most civil engineering and mining situations, block instability of this nature is both dangerous and economically undesirable. Moreover, the removal of blocks adjacent to the face creates new free faces which allow the progressive loosening and dislodgement of deeper-seated blocks.
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© 1993 Stephen D. Priest
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Priest, S.D. (1993). Analysis of rigid blocks. In: Discontinuity Analysis for Rock Engineering. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1498-1_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1498-1_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-010-4656-5
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-1498-1
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