Variation of Mechanical and Microstructural Characteristics of Marble and Serpentinite under Artificial Dried-wetted-cycling Process Available to Purchase

Focusing on marble and serpentinite, this study aims to investigate the variation of physical indices, microstructure, and mechanical properties of the rocks under man-made dried-wetted-cycling processes. Experimental results reveal that the calcite mineral of marble dissolves during artificial weathering cycles and results in descending of grain contact degrees. Both strength and deformability of marble reduces as cycling number increases, but the weathering resistance and its variation increase. For serpentinite, mineral dissolution and phase transition are observed during artificial weathering. Mineral dissolution results in deduction of deformation. However the quartz formed from phase transition is helpful for the contact bonding between mineral grains. During cycling process, both the weathering resistance and mechanical properties fluctuantly vary, with limited increasing trends.