Geomechanical and water vapor absorption characteristics of clay-bearing soft rocks at great depth

The geological and physico-mechanical properties characterization of deep soft rocks is one of the critical scientific issues for deep soft rock engineering. In the present study, X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, scanning electron microscope (SEM), and mercury intrusion porosimetry experiments were carried out to investigate the mineral compositions, microstructure and porosity characteristics of the 13 clay-bearing soft rock samples collected...