Rock-like materials refer to geological materials and engineering materials such as rock and concrete. Rocks are diverse, composed of minerals or cuttings aggregated by geological processes. As a kind of composite material, concrete is composed of cement, lime, gypsum, and other inorganic cementing materials with water, or asphalt, resin, and other organic cementing materials. These materials aggregate in a certain proportion, are mixed, cured, and hardened at a certain temperature. Concrete is widely used in underground engineering because of its rich raw materials, low price, simple production process, high compressive strength, good durability, and wide range of strength grades.

With the development of underground engineering, rock-like materials draw more and more attention in this field. As a kind of quasi-brittle material with remarkable non-uniformity, rock-like materials exhibit great differences in strength, deformation, permeability, and other mechanical characteristics due to their various mineral compositions, porosity, and weak structural plane, which affect the stability of underground engineering substantially. Considering the complexity of rock-like materials, it is necessary to carry out laboratory experiments on the strength, deformation characteristics, and permeability evolution of such materials in mining, tunnelling, cavern group, and other underground projects, and then apply them in the field. But up to now, the laboratory experiment and field application of rock materials are still in separation, and the combination of them is relatively poor. The separation between laboratory experiment and field application hinders the application of advanced rock-like materials in the field and misleads laboratory experiments. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct systematic research on the combination of laboratory experiment and field application of rock-like materials.

The aim of this Special Issue is to provide an opportunity for scholars from all over the world to conduct a broader scientific and technological discussion, aiming to further strengthen the field application of rock-like materials. The differences of strength, deformation, and permeability of different rock-like materials and their influences on the stability of underground engineering are expected to be explored by combining laboratory experiments with the field, especially the application of these kinds of materials in disaster prevention and control of underground engineering. The discussion includes but is not limited to strength, deformation, permeability characteristics, stability monitoring and early warning methods, new rock-like materials, and application case studies of disaster prevention and control in the field. Original research and review articles are welcome.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Laboratory experiments on rock-like materials based on field requirements
• Laboratory experiments and field application of strength and deformation characteristics of rock materials
• Permeability characteristics and field application of rock-like materials under dynamic and static load
• Application of monitoring and early warning technology for the stability of rock-like materials in the field
• Case study on the application of rock-like materials in disaster prevention of underground engineering
• Experimental study and field application of new rock-like materials