Abstract
: Conventional rock mechanics testing techniques typically involve the loading of samples and measurement of displacements or strains on the outer boundary of the specimen surface. Neutron diffraction based strain measurement techniques represent a unique and powerful tool for measuring the strain within geological materials under load. The structural variability and non-uniform crystallinity of geological materials, however, create many complexities in the intensity patterns that must be analyzed to quantify strains within the material. The attenuating and scattering properties of the pressure cell housing the sample further add difficulties to the data analysis. This paper describes the methods and processes used to process neutron scattering data for strain measurement in geological materials. It is intended to provide a primer for those in the rock mechanics community that are interested in utilizing this technique along with additional discussion of neutron diffraction experimental factors that may affect data quality.
