ECTS Credits: 5 ECTS /133 hours of work

Language of instruction: English
Timing: Beginning of September to end of October (once per year)
Learning outcomes: Upon completion of the course students should: (1) know the basic stress waves in solids; (2) understand stress wave theory, especially one-dimensional elastic wave theory; (3) understand basic knowledge of shock waves, especially shock collision; (4) be able to do stress wave experiments and measurements; (5) be able to use stress wave and shock wave theory to solve general stress and shock wave problems in rock, mining and other civil engineering.

Contents: The course will: (1) introduce basic characteristics of shock waves and stress waves; (2) introduce shock wave collision and its applications in engineering; (3) present basic theory on stress waves, focusing on one-dimensional waves; (4) introduce wave reflection and transmission; (5) introduce spalling theory and its engineering applications; (6) present wave attenuation and dispersion in solids, focusing on rock mass; (7) introduce typical examples from engineering, focusing on rock, mining and mineral processing; (8) let students do stress wave experiments in laboratory; (9) let students make their own experimental designs and carry out the experiments on stress waves in laboratory .

Mode of delivery: Face to face (remote teaching in the year 2020)

Learning activities and teaching methods: Lectures, seminars, assignments, and laboratory experiments (no lab testing in 2020).

Target group: students from civil engineering, material science, mechanical engineering, mining and mineral processing, geophysics and geology

Prerequisites and co-requisites: Bachelor degree in engineering such as civil engineering, mining or mineral processing or geology.


Book used in teaching:
Zhang ZX. Rock fracture and blasting: theory and applications. Oxford: Elsevier, 2016 (Chapters 1 and 2 will be main contents for teaching, and some other chapters are for reading only).

Recommended materials to read:
Kolsky H. Stress waves in solids. New York: Dover Publications; 1963.
Johnson W. Impact strength of materials. London: Edward Arnold; 1972.


Assessment methods and criteria: Assessment methods include oral presentations, written reports, seminars, assignments and written examination. The total points gained from the above determine the final grade of the course, and it is given on the scale 0-5.
• For grade 1, the student must be able to know and understand the basic knowledge in this course.
• For grade 2, the student must know how to make stress wave analysis.
• For grade 3 the student must be able to use the theory to analyse a problem related to stress waves.
• For grade 4, the student must be able to solve a problem by using the theory.
• For grade 5, the student must be able to apply the acquired knowledge to solve a wave problem and to do improvement on a current practical operation is it is not perfect design.

Grading: The course unit utilizes a numerical grading scale 1-5. In the numerical scale zero stands for a fail.

Person responsible: Professor Zongxian Zhang