Strength Evolution of Geomaterials in the Octahedral Plane under Nonisothermal and Unsaturated Conditions
Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 17, Issue 7
Abstract
Current geomechanical applications imply nonisothermal processes of unsaturated geomaterials, in most cases following stress paths different from the classical triaxial compression often used in laboratory testing. Although the effects of temperature, suction, and stress-path direction (Lode’s angle) on the strength of geomaterials have been investigated independently, an integrated analysis combining the three effects has not yet been performed. In this paper, a thermoplastic constitutive model for unsaturated conditions that accounts for the effect of Lode’s angle on the strength of geomaterials is presented. The yield surface evolves—shrinking for increasing temperature and expanding for increasing suction—and has its maximum strength for triaxial compression and its minimum for triaxial extension. Examples that can be related to geoenergy applications highlight the importance of accounting for the effects of temperature, suction, and Lode’s angle on the evolution of the strength of geomaterials. Numerical results show that not considering these effects may give rise to misleading predictions of the strength of geomaterials.
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Acknowledgments
V. V. acknowledges support from the EPFL Fellows fellowship program cofunded by Marie Curie FP7 Grant 291771. The authors also acknowledge financial support from NAGRA (Swiss National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste).
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Published In
International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 17 • Issue 7 • July 2017
Copyright
© 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Nov 5, 2015
Accepted: Sep 22, 2016
Published online: Dec 1, 2016
Discussion open until: May 1, 2017
Published in print: Jul 1, 2017
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