Uniaxial and triaxial compression tests are performed to assess the effects of temperature and loading rate on strength and deformability of Maha Sarakham salt. Specimens are compressed to failure under constant confining pressures between 0 and 12 MPa while the axial stress is increased at constant rates of 0.001, 0.01, and 0.1 MPa/s. Elasticity and strength at dilation and at failure increase with loading rates. Sets of empirical equations are derived for the strength, temperature, and applied stress rate in forms of power, logarithmic, and exponential functions. The distortional strain energy at dilation and at failure varies linearly with the mean normal stress. The proposed strength criteria are applied to determine the safe maximum withdrawal rate of a compressed-air energy storage cavern in the Maha Sarakham formation. The strain energy criterion that considers both distortional and mean stress-strain tends to give the most conservative result.
