The material in this work is focused on recent developments in research into the stress-strain behavior of geomaterials, with an emphasis on laboratory measurements, soil constitutive modeling and behavior of soil structures (such as reinforced soils, piles and slopes). The latest advancements in the field, such as the rate effect and dynamic behavior of both clay and sand, behavior of modified soils and soil mixtures, and soil liquefaction are addressed.

Integrating and blending traditional theory with particle-energy-field theory, this book provides a framework for the analysis of soil behaviour under varied environmental conditions. This book explains the why and how of geotechnical engineering in an environmental context. Using both SI and Imperial units, the authors cover: rock mechanics soil mechanics and hydrogeology soil properties and classifications and issues relating to contaminated land. Students of civil, geotechnical and environmental engineering and practitioners unfamiliar with the particle-energy-field concept, will find that this book's novel approach helps to clarify the complex theory behind geotechnics.

This book is about the principal concept of soil mechanics that become the basis in explaining the soil mechanical behaviours. It is the extended concept of effective stress of Terzaghi and it is known as "the concept of effective stress and shear strength interaction." This new concept incorporates the role of mobilised shear strength developed within the soil body in resisting the compressive effect. Based on this new concept a comprehensive soil volume change framework has been developed known as Rotational Multiple Yield Surface Framework (RMYSF). This RMYSF is able to explain and quantify the puzzled and complex soil volume change behaviours. The main advantage of this RMYSF is that it is able to make a good prediction of soil and rock stress-strain responses at any effective stress. This will lead to accurate prediction of soil and rock settlements. Due to its simplicity and the comprehensive nature of this new fundamental concept in soil and rock mechanics, it will eventually be included in soil and rock mechanics syllabus for undergraduate and postgraduate courses. This book would be very useful for geotechnical engineers dealing with soil settlement, underground excavation, computer modelling, rock mechanics, road engineering, earth and rock dam engineering and tunnel engineering.

Soils can rarely be described as ideally elastic or perfectly plastic and yet simple elastic and plastic models form the basis for the most traditional geotechnical engineering calculations. With the advent of cheap powerful computers the possibility of performing analyses based on more realistic models has become widely available. One of the aims of this book is to describe the basic ingredients of a family of simple elastic-plastic models of soil behaviour and to demonstrate how such models can be used in numerical analyses. Such numerical analyses are often regarded as mysterious black boxes but a proper appreciation of their worth requires an understanding of the numerical models on which they are based. Though the models on which this book concentrates are simple, understanding of these will indicate the ways in which more sophisticated models will perform.

This book explains the hypoplastic modelling framework. It is divided into two parts, the first of which is devoted to principles of hypoplasticity. First, the basic features of soil’s mechanical behaviour are introduced, namely non-linearity and asymptotic properties. These features are then incorporated into simple one-dimensional hypoplastic equations for compression and shear. Subsequently, a hypoplastic equivalent of the Modified Cam-Clay model is developed in 2D space using stress and strain invariants to demonstrate key similarities and differences between elasto-plastic and hypoplastic formulations. Lastly, the mathematical structure of hypoplastic models is explained by tracing their historical development, from the early trial-and-error models to more recent approaches. In turn, Part II introduces specific hypoplastic models for soils. First, two reference models for sand and clay are defined. After summarising their mathematical formulations, calibration procedures are described and discussed. Subsequently, more advanced modelling approaches are covered: the intergranular strain concept incorporating the effects of small strain stiffness and cyclic loading, viscohypoplasticity for predicting rate effects, soil structure to represent structured and bonded materials and soil anisotropy. The book concludes with a description of partial saturation and thermal effects: topics that are increasingly important to the disciplines of energy and environmental geotechnics. Selecting a constitutive model and its parameters is often the most important and yet challenging part of any numerical analysis in geotechnical engineering. Hypoplasticity involves a specific class of soil constitutive models, which are described in detail here. The book offers an essential resource, both for model users who need a more advanced model for their geotechnical calculations and are mainly interested in parameter calibration procedures, and for model developers who are seeking a comprehensive understanding of the mathematical structure of hypoplasticity.

Soils can rarely be described as ideally elastic or perfectly plastic and yet simple elastic and plastic models form the basis for the most traditional geotechnical engineering calculations. With the advent of cheap powerful computers the possibility of performing analyses based on more realistic models has become widely available. One of the aims of this book is to describe the basic ingredients of a family of simple elastic-plastic models of soil behaviour and to demonstrate how such models can be used in numerical analyses. Such numerical analyses are often regarded as mysterious black boxes but a proper appreciation of their worth requires an understanding of the numerical models on which they are based. Though the models on which this book concentrates are simple, understanding of these will indicate the ways in which more sophisticated models will perform.