Subventions et des contributions :

Subvention ou bourse octroyée s'appliquant à plus d'un exercice financier (2017-2018 à 2018-2019).

In September 1989, a buckling ("pop-up") failure occurred at Woods Sand and Gravel Quarry in Kingston, ON.x000D
This resulted in flooding of the quarry and significant impact on the local groundwater conditions (e.g.x000D
neighbouring wells went dry). Buckling failures have commonly arisen in southern Ontario and thex000D
mid-western U.S. and typically develop suddenly, with little warning, driven by high horizontal in situ stressesx000D
in the stiff, laminated, near-surface rock. As a result, the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Climate Changex000D
(OMECC) has requested quantifiable assessment of rock buffer thickness (the separation between quarry floorx000D
and underlying aquifer) for future quarry development on the basis of fundamental engineering principles andx000D
site-specific conditions. Pop-up buckling, also referred to as three hinge buckling (THB), tends to occurx000D
violently in laminated rock slabs where a central hinge and two abutment hinges are formed. Although manyx000D
authors have made progress in the study of buckling behaviour in rock mechanics, several key issues remainx000D
unresolved. There is potential that this licensing requirement, or similar, will arise in other Canadian and U.S.x000D
jurisdictions. Given Dexter's stated objective of extending their business interests nationally andx000D
internationally, obtaining a greater understanding of this challenging issue will help to both offset potentialx000D
risks to existing quarry operations and future quarry development opportunities in other jurisdictions. In orderx000D
to proactively address this issue, Dexter is initiating a research project to better understand the mechanisms andx000D
risk factors associated with three hinge buckling, and is engaging Dr. Corkum's lab to help conduct thex000D
necessary background research. This proposed research program will involve a laboratory experimentalx000D
program, supported by numerical modelling (discontinuum), to investigate the THB buckling mechanism. Inx000D
addition, field mapping to quantify geotechnical structural conditions for a quarry in Nova Scotia will bex000D
conducted to support translating the laboratory and numerical findings to actual field conditions. The resultsx000D
will have practical, directly applicable implications for Dexter, the Canadian mining industry, regulatory