Fabric control on strain and rupture of heterogeneous shale samples by using a non-conventional mechanical test

Abstract This work was a part of the preliminary stage of the ANDRA project on a deep-seated research laboratory for the feasibility study of long-term radioactive waste storage in the Callovo–Oxfordian argillites of the Eastern part of the Paris Basin. These rocks are bedded, their density is about 2.4, and they contain an average of 30% carbonates and 25% quartz. Thick (5 mm) sections from cores were put through a non-conventional device called CGI testcell (CGI: Centre de Geologie de l'Ingenieur, i.e. Engineering Geology Centre). The aim of this versatile device is to achieve plane deformation tests under compressive uniaxial loading together with controlled temperature and humidity cond…