Mechanical properties and supporting effect of CRLD bolts under static pull test conditions

A device for supporting soft rock masses combined with a constant resistance structure characterized by constant resistance and large deformation at the end of a steel bar, known as the constant resistance and large deformation (CRLD) bolt, has recently been developed to counteract soft rock swelling that often occurs during deep mining. In order to further study the mechanical properties of the CRLD bolt, we investigated its mechanical properties by comparison with the conventional strength bolt (rebar) using static pull tests on many aspects, including supporting capacity, elongation, radial deformation, and energy absorption. The tests verified that the mechanical defects of the rebar, which include the decrease of bolt diameter, reduction of supporting capacity, and emergence and evolution of fracture until failure during the whole pull process, were caused by the Poisson’s ratio effect. Due to the special structure set on the CRLD bolt, the bolt presents a seemingly unusual phenomenon of the negative Poisson’s ratio effect, i.e., the diameter of the constant resistance structure increases while under-pulling. It is the very effect that ensures the extraordinary mechanical properties, including high resistance, large elongation, and strong energy absorption. According to the comparison and analysis of numerical simulation and field test, we can conclude that the CRLD bolt works better than the rebar bolt.