Rock Deformation

Our Department has built a worldwide reputation for excellence in leading edge experimental rock deformation research to understand tectonic processes from earthquakes to mountain building to mantle flow. Our equipment can reproduce conditions from the brittle crust to the upper mantle. We specialize in innovative design of equipment and experiments. Most of our equipment was designed and built in Liverpool.  

Contacts 

For questions or information on using these facilities, please contact: 

• Dan Faulkner: faulkner@liverpool.ac.uk 
• Elisabetta Mariani: mariani@liverpool.ac.uk 
• David McNamara: D.Mcnamara@liverpool.ac.uk 

Instruments and Capabilities 

Triaxial deformation apparatus TR1 

• Servo-controlled confining pressure <200 MPa 
• Servo-controlled pore pressure <200 MPa 
• Strain rates from 10-8 s-1 to 10-5 s-1 
• Temperature <200 degC  

Triaxial deformation apparatus TR2 

• Servo-controlled confining pressure <250 MPa 
• Servo-controlled pore pressure <200 MPa 
• Strain rates from 10-8 s-1 to 10-5 s-1 
• Temperature <200 degC 
• Acoustic measurements (8 electrical feed throughs with axial P and S wave measurements)  

Triaxial deformation apparatus TR3 

• Servo-controlled confining pressure <250 MPa 
• Servo-controlled pore pressure <200 MPa 
• Strain rates from 10-8 s-1 to 10-5 s-1 
• Argon gas confining medium 
• Temperature <800 degC  

Rotary shear apparatus 

• Fully confined ring shear sample assembly 
• Servo-hydraulic axial load actuator <700 kN 
• Fast-acting servo-hydraulic confining pressure <200 MPa 
• Upstream and downstream servo-controlled pore pressure <200 MPa 
• Displacement rates from 0.01 microns/s to 2m/s 
• Acoustic/electrical  measurements (15 electrical feed throughs)  

High-temperature hydrostatic apparatus 

• Servo-controlled confining pressure <200 MPa 
• Servo-controlled pore pressure <200 MPa-1 
• Temperature <800 degC  

Hydrostatic apparatus 

• Servo-controlled confining pressure <200 MPa 
• Servo-controlled upstream and downstream pore pressure control <200 MPa 
• Acoustic measurements (8 electrical feed throughs with axial P and S wave measurements)  

Uniaxial hydraulic press 

• Brazilian jig for tensile strength measurements 
• Acoustic measurements (axial P and S wave measurements) 
• Axial and radial strain gauge measurements  

Solid medium ‘Griggs’ apparatus 

• Confining pressure <2 GPa 
• Strain rates from 10-8 s-1 to 10-4 s-1 
• Temperature <1200 degC  

High temperature creep apparatus 

• Dead-loading creep apparatus design 
• High resolution displacement measurement via a double LVDT displacement cage 
• Temperature <1500 degC 
• Controlled atmosphere furnace; Argon gas, CO2  

High temperature horizontal tube furnace 

• Temperature <1700 degC 
• Controlled atmosphere furnace; Argon gas, CO2  

BET surface area analysis  

Helium pycnometer  

Rock preparation facilities 

• Coring 
• Flat-bed grinder 
• Rotary grinder 
• Large annular saw for cutting of delicate samples 
• Small, high precision, annular saw 
• Slow cutting saw with 2D goniometer