Stress corrosion cracking is a process that describes the interaction of chemistry and loading on fractures in materials. This determines the time it takes for fractures to propagate in intact rock, and therefore the rate of rockfall development in natural landscapes. In order to understand this process, Anne Voigtlaender and Kerry Leith visited the SALSA instrument at the ILL 'Neutrons for Science' reactor in Grenoble, France. Using neutron diffraction (the bending of a neutron beam by the rock's atomic structure) they measured the release of stresses in specially prepared samples of Carrara Marble.
This is the first time such a test has been performed on rock that has experienced controlled long-term loading, and results should shed light on the mechanics of fracture development in natural slopes, as well as future effects from changing temperature and rainwater chemistry.
Testing was supported by MarmiCarrara, the Institut Laue-Langevin, the Fachhochschule Köln, and the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung.