ESR4 Evanthia Kakogiannou
Research project description
Rainfall induced slope failures: Simulation and validation through case studies
ESR4 Fellow: Evanthia KAKOGIANNOU
Institution: Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, University of Padua (UNIPD), Italy
Supervisor: Prof. Bernard Schrefler, Dr. Ing. Lorenzo Sanavia
Rainfall induced landslides represent a major threat to human life and economic prosperity. The understanding of triggering mechanisms and the geomechanical modelling of the failure conditions are fundamental issues for the mitigation of this hazard. With regards to numerical modelling of hydrologically driven slope instability, there exists a need for a simulation tool which is accurate enough to predict the timing and location of failures. In response, a recently new approach is explored.
The behaviour of the soil under rainfall conditions is closely related not only to the distribution of pore water pressures but also to the stress state during infiltration involving both mechanical and hyrological processes. In this work, the modelling of the relevant physical processes in considered as a coupled variably saturated hydro-mechanical problem. In particular, this project aims to improve the finite element modeling of rainfall induced slope failure using a multiphase model for elasto-plastic porous media in conjunction with a more generalized instability criterion based on the sign of the second-order work.
The model will be applied to simulate case studies coming from centrifuge testing in cooperation with Vasileios Matziaris (ESR 13). Moreover real world cases will be studied creating the possibility for future collaboration with Barbara Switala (ESR 7) and Lorenzo Benedetti (ESR 8) by sharing data and comparing results. Finally, the constitutive model for unsaturated soils and the regularized viscoplastic model which will be developed by Aleksandra Jakubczyk (ESR 1) and Maria Lazari (ESR 5) respectively, can be implemented in the final finite element code.
Plane strain localization simulation inspired by (Mokni & Desrues, 1998). Numerical results at the gauss points: (a) Values of the equivalent plastic strain, (b) Negative values of the second order work.
