Geomechanics

Summary

The course aims at providing future civil engineers with the knowledge of geomechanics for professional practice. It addresses, among others, the main stress-strain constitutive models within the context of elasticity and elasto-plasticity and the estimation methods of the lateral earth pressure.

Content

Keywords

Mechanical behaviour of geomaterial, Constitutive models, elasto-plasticity, numerical modelling in geomechanics, laboratory and in-situ testing

Learning Prerequisites

Required courses

Soil mechanics and groundwater seepage

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, the student must be able to:

• Recognize the stress path(s) to which the soil is subjected in the context of the engineering application of interest
• Use methods for evaluating the in-situ stress state
• Recognize the most suitable constitutive model for the problem of interest in relation to the soil and the problem itself
• Judge capabilities and limitations of constitutive models
• Assess / Evaluate Evaluate the geotechnical parameters governing the geomechanical problem
• Choose the correct laboratory or in-situ tests for the determination of the needed parameters
• Interpret the experimental data resulting from a laboratory campaign in order to obtain the parameters of interest
• Assess / Evaluate the lateral earth pressure under different hydraulic conditions
• Use consciously a finite element software for creating a geomechanical model appropriate for the problem of interest

Transversal skills

• Set objectives and design an action plan to reach those objectives.
• Use a work methodology appropriate to the task.
• Communicate effectively with professionals from other disciplines.
• Demonstrate the capacity for critical thinking
• Use both general and domain specific IT resources and tools
• Access and evaluate appropriate sources of information.

Teaching methods

• Ex cathedra and exercices

Assessment methods

Final exam (written): 60% of the final mark

Mid-term exam (written): 20% of the final mark

Continuous assessment (workshops and projects): 20% of the final mark

Supervision

Resources

Bibliography

Lectures notes and handouts given during the course

Moodle Link

• https://go.epfl.ch/CIVIL-402