Through the contributions of well-known scholars, this book provides an updated overview of some relevant developments and applications in this rapidly growing field. Topics include constitutive models for geomaterials, numerical analysis of ground improvement techniques and tunnelling problems.

In geomechanics, existing design methods are very much dependent upon sophisticated on-site techniques to assess ground conditions. This book describes numerical analysis, computer simulation and modelling that can be used to answer some highly complex questions associated with geomechanics. The contributors, who are all international experts in the field, also give insights into the future directions of these methods. Numerical Analysis and Modelling in Geomechanics will appeal to professional engineers involved in designing and building both onshore and offshore structures, where geomechanical considerations may well be outside the usual codes of practice, and therefore specialist advice is required. Postgraduate researchers, degree students carrying out project work in this area will also find the book an invaluable resource.

This book presents recent research into developing and applying computational tools to estimate the performance and safety of hydraulic structures from the planning and construction stage to the service period. Based on the results of a close collaboration between the author and his colleagues, friends, students and field engineers, it shows how to achieve a good correlation between numerical computation and the actual in situ behavior of hydraulic structures. The book’s heuristic and visualized style disseminates the philosophy and road map as well as the findings of the research. The chapters reflect the various aspects of the three typical and practical methods (the finite element method, the block element method, the composite element method) that the author has been working on and made essential contributions to since the 1980s. This book is an advanced continuation of Hydraulic Structures by the same author, published by Springer in 2015.

This book thoroughly describes a theory concerning the yield and failure of materials under multi-axial stresses – the Unified Strength Theory, which was first proposed by the author and has been frequently quoted since. It provides a system of yield and failure criteria adopted for most materials, from metals to rocks, concretes, soils, and polymers. This new edition includes six additional chapters: General behavior of Strength theory function; Visualization of the Unified Strength Theory; Equivalent Stress of the UST and Comparisons with other criteria; Economic Signification of the UST; General form of failure criterion; Beauty of Strength Theories. It is intended for researchers and graduate students in various fields, including engineering mechanics, material mechanics, plasticity, soil mechanics, rock mechanics, mechanics of metallic materials and civil engineering, hydraulic engineering, geotechnical engineering, mechanical engineering and military engineering.

The aim of this book is intended, through parallel expounding, to help readers comprehensively grasp the intrinsic features of typical advanced computational methods. These methods are created in recent three decades for the understanding of the post-failure of geo-materials accompanied with discontinuous and finite deformation/dislocation, as well as the violent fluid-structure interaction accompanied with strong distortion of water surface. The strong points and weak points of the formalisms for governing equations, the discretization schemes, the nodal interpolation /approximation of field variables, and their connectivity (via support domains, covers, or enrichments), the basic algorithms, etc., are clarified. Being aware of that the differences in these methods are not so large as at the first glance, this book will help readers to select appropriate methods, to improve the methods for their specific purpose, and to evaluate the reliability/applicability of the outcomes in the hazard evaluation of geotechnical (hydraulic) structures beyond extreme work situation. This book may be looked at as an advanced continuation of “Computational Geomechanics and Hydraulic Structures” by the author (2018) (Springer-Verlag, ISBN 978-981-10-8134-7) which elaborates the fundamental computational methods in geomechanics for the routine design of geotechnical (hydraulic) engineering.

The International Symposium on History of Machines and Mechanisms is a new initiative to promote explicitly researches and publications in the field of the History of TMM (Theory of Machines and Mechanisms). It was held at the University of Cassino, Italy, from 11 to 13 May 2000. The Symposium was devoted mainly to the technical aspects of historical developments and therefore it has been addressed mainly to the IFToMM Community. In fact, most the authors of the contributed papers are experts in TMM and related topics. This has been, indeed, a challenge: convincing technical experts to go further in-depth into the background of their topics of expertise. We have received a very positive response, as can be seen by the fact that these Proceedings contain contributions by authors from all around the world. We received about 50 papers, and after review about 40 papers were accepted for both presentation and publishing in the Proceedings. This means also that the History of TMM is of interest everywhere and, indeed, an in-depth knowledge of the past can be of great help in working on the present and in shaping the future with new ideas. I believe that a reader will take advantage of the papers in these Proceedings with further satisfaction and motivation for her or his work (historical or not). These papers cover the wide field of the History of Mechanical Engineering and particularly the History of TMM.

Biomechanics applies the laws and techniques of mechanics in the study of biological systems and related phenomena. Biomechanics uses mathematical and computational tools such as model construction of musclo-skeletal system, body fluid circulation, to aid medical diagnosis, therapeutics and surgery planning, designing of prostheses and implants or in tissue engineering. Present book targets specific topics pertaining to the biomechanics of soft tissues. Subjects addressed includes solids and multi-species mixtures as open systems: a continuum mechanics perspective; electro-chemo-mechanical couplings: tissues with a fixed electric charge and growth of biological tissues.