Aspects of rock permeability

Effective evaluation of rock permeability is required in different energy, engineering and environmental projects. Although much research has been conducted on rock permeability, it is still one of the most difficult tasks for practicing rock engineers to accurately determine rock permeability. Based on a comprehensive literature review, this paper outlines the key aspects of rock permeability by presenting the representative values of the permeability of different rocks, describing the empirical and semi-empirical correlations for estimating the permeability of rocks, and discussing the main factors affecting the permeability of rocks. The factors discussed include stress, depth, temperature, and discontinuity intensity and aperture. This paper also highlights the scale effect on rock permeability, interconnectivity of discontinuities, and anisotropy of rock permeability. This paper provides the fundamental and essential information required for effective evaluation of rock permeability.