SCANNING DEVICE TO QUANTIFY JOINT SURFACE ROUGHNESS.

Abstract

Abstract The shear strength characteristics of rock joints are highly dependent on the roughness of the joint surfaces. However, roughness is a relative term and current methods of describing roughness in quantitative terms are generally not suited to detailed analytical scrutiny. In connection with an investigation into the development of side shear resistance in rough rock socketed piles, a scanning device, which was automatic and free from operator subjectivity, was developed to provide detailed measurements of surface roughness of joint samples obtained in situ. The data collected were suitable for statistical analysis so that surface roughness could be uniquely quantified..