• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.353-370
• /
• 2017

This paper presents a case study and numerical investigation to study the hydro-mechanical response of a shallow landslide in unsaturated slopes subjected to rainfall infiltration using a coupled model. The coupled model was interpreted in details by expressing the balance equations for soil mixture and the coupled constitutive equations. The coupled model was verified against experimental data from the shearing-infiltration triaxial tests. A real case of shallow landslide occurred on Mt. Umyeonsan, Seoul, Korea was employed to explore the influence of rainfall infiltration on the slope stability during heavy rainfall. Numerical results showed that the coupled model accurately predicted the poromechanical behavior of a rainfall-induced landslide by simultaneously linking seepage and stress-strain problems. It was also found that the coupled model properly described progress failure of a slope in a highly transient condition. Through the comparisons between the coupled and uncoupled models, the coupled model provided more realistic analysis results under rainfall. Consequently, the coupled model was found to be feasible for the stability and seepage analysis of practical engineering problems.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.33 no.1
• /
• pp.10-28
• /
• 2023

Long-term shear behavior of the rock discontinuities should be analyzed and its stability should be evaluated to ensure the long-term stability of a high-level radioactive waste disposal repository. The long-term shear behavior of the discontinuities can be modeled with creep and RSF models. The shear creep test, velocity step test, and slide-hold-slide test can be performed to determine their model parameters or analyze the shear behavior by experiments under various conditions. Testing apparatuses for direct shear, triaxial compression, and biaxial shear were mainly used and improved to reproduce the thermo-hydro-mechanical conditions of local bedrock, and it was confirmed that the shear behavior could vary. In order to design a high-level radioactive waste disposal site in Korea, the long-term behavior of rock discontinuities should be investigated in consideration of rock types, thermo-hydro-mechanical conditions, metamorphism, and restoration of shear resistance.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.423-436
• /
• 2016

Currently, there is a great interest in the coupling between multiphase fluid flow and geomechanical effects in hydrocarbon reservoirs and surrounding rocks. The ideal solution for this coupled problem is to introduce the geomechanical effects through the stress analysis solution and implement an algorithm, which assures that the equations governing the flow and stress analyses are obeyed in each time step. This paper deals with the implementation of a program (FORTRAN90 interface code), which was developed to couple conventional reservoir (ECLIPSE) and geomechanical (ABAQUS) simulators, using a partial coupling algorithm. The explicit coupled hydro-mechanical behavior of Iranian field during depletion and $CO_2$ injection is studied using the soils consolidation procedure available in ABAQUS. Time dependent reservoir pressure fields obtained from three dimensional compositional reservoir models were transferred into finite element reservoir geomechanical models in ABAQUS as multi-phase flow in deforming reservoirs cannot be performed within ABAQUS. The FEM analysis of the reservoir showed no sign of plastic strain under production and $CO_2$ injection scenarios in any part of the reservoir and the stress paths do not show a critical behavior.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.11 no.3
• /
• pp.257-269
• /
• 2001

Numerical simulation is performed to understand the structural behavior of an underground radwaste repository, assumed to be located at the depth of 500 m, in a granitic rock mats, in which a fault intersects the roof of the repository cavern. Two dimensional universal distinct element code, UDEC is used in the analysis. The numerical model includes a granitic rock mass, a canister with PWR spent fuels surrounded by the compacted bentonite inside the deposition hole, and the mixed bentonite backfilled in the rest of the space within the repository cavern. The structural behavior of three different cases, each case with a fault of an angle of $33^{\circ},\;45^{\circ},\;and\;58^{\circ}$ passing through the cavern roof-wall intersection, has been compared. And then fro the case with the $45^{\circ}$ fault, the hydro-mechanical, thermo-mechanical, and thermo-hydro-mechanical interaction behavior have been studied. The effect of the time-dependent decaying heat, from the radioactive materials in PWR spent fuels, on the repository and its surroundings has been studied. The groundwater table is assumed to be located 10m below the ground surface, and a steady state flow algorithm is used.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.31 no.6
• /
• pp.610-622
• /
• 2021

The DECOVALEX project is one of the representative international cooperative projects to enhance the understanding of the complex Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemical(THMC) coupled behavior in the high-level radioactive waste disposal system based on the numerical simulation. DECOVALEX-2023 is the current phase consisting of 7 tasks, and Task C aims to model the THM coupled behavior in the disposal system based on the Full-scale Emplacement (FE) experiment at the Mont-Terri underground rock laboratory. This study performs the numerical simulation based on the OGS-FLAC developed for the current study. In the numerical model, we emplaced the heater with constant power horizontally based on the FE experiment and monitored the pressure development, temperature increase, and mechanical deformation at the specific monitoring points. We monitored the capillary pressure as the primary effect inducing the flow in the buffer system, and thermal stress and pressurization were dominant in the surrounding rocks' area. The results will also be compared and validated with the other participating groups and the experimental data further.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.9 no.4
• /
• pp.328-336
• /
• 1999

To characterize the hydro-mechanical behavior of a rock joint, a rotary shear testing apparatus was devised in this study. Shear stress was driven by twisting the end of a sample in the rotary shear testing apparatus. The test results show that the rotary shear test underestimates the peak shear strength of a rock joint. The torque is known as a function of the radial distance from the axis of rotation, resulting in the radial variation of the shear stress. Fluid flow through rock joints is mainly dependent on the Joint roughness, contact area, initial aperture. To examine the dependency, the relationship between the hydraulic and the mechanical apertures for shear-flow was established by measuring the initial aperture. It shows that the mechanical aperture and the hydraulic aperture increase linearly with the dilatancy. The difference between the hydraulic and mechanical apertures describes the deviation from the behavior predicted by the parallel plate model.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.30 no.4
• /
• pp.306-319
• /
• 2020

Characterizations of Excavation Damage Zone (EDZ), which is hydro-mechanical degrading the host rock, are the important issues on the geological repository for the spent nuclear fuel. In the DECOVALEX 2019 project, Task G aimed to model the fractured rock numerically, describe the hydro-mechanical behavior of EDZ, and predict the change of the hydraulic factor during the lifetime of the geological repository. Task G prepared two-dimensional fractured rock model to compare the characteristics of each simulation tools in Work Package 1, validated the extended three-dimensional model using the TAS04 in-situ interference tests from Äspö Hard Rock Laboratory in Work Package 2, and applied the thermal and glacial loads to monitor the long-term hydro-mechanical response on the fractured rock in Work Package 3. Each modelling team adopted both Finite Element Method (FEM) and Discrete Element Method (DEM) to simulate the hydro-mechanical behavior of the fracture rock, and added the various approaches to describe the EDZ and fracture geometry which are appropriate to each simulation method. Therefore, this research can introduce a variety of numerical approaches and considerations to model the geological repository for the spent nuclear fuel in the crystalline fractured rock.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.26 no.3
• /
• pp.191-208
• /
• 2024

In this study, a hydro-mechanical-damage coupled analysis model was developed to evaluate the structural safety of radioactive waste disposal structures. The Mazars damage model, widely used to model the fracture behavior of brittle materials such as rocks or concrete, was coupled with conventional hydro-mechanical analysis and the developed model was verified via theoretical solutions from literature. To derive the numerical input values for damage-coupled analysis, uniaxial compressive strength and Brazilian tensile strength tests were performed on concrete samples made using the mix ratio of the disposal concrete silo cured under dry and saturated conditions. The input factors derived from the laboratory-scale experiments were applied to a two-dimensional finite element model of the concrete silos at the Wolseong Nuclear Environmental Management Center in Gyeongju and numerical analysis was conducted to analyze the effects of damage consideration, analysis technique, and waste loading conditions. The hydro-mechanical-damage coupled model developed in this study will be applied to the long-term behavior and stability analysis of deep geological repositories for high-level radioactive waste disposal.

• International Journal of Automotive Technology
• /
• v.8 no.2
• /
• pp.155-163
• /
• 2007

The control of the fuel to be introduced into the combustion chamber under idling and low-load conditions is known to be a problem in Diesel engines, owing to the relatively small fraction of the full-load fuel needed under light loads. Thus, particular attention should be paid to the behavior of the injector with reference to short injection events. This work presents the results of an experimental campaign carried out with two different types of common rail injectors, a standard injector and a modified one. The latter, coming from a simple modification realized in a standard injector, exhibits linear behavior between injected fuel and solenoid energizing time in the field of short injections. A direct comparison of the two injection behaviors suggests a possible way to better control short or pilot injections.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.81-92
• /
• 2013

This paper presents the results of a numerical investigation into the behavior of retaining wall subject to cycles of freezing and thawing due to seasonal temperature change. The thermo-hydro-mechanical coupled finite element modeling strategy was first established to simulate the wall behavior. A series of finite element analyses were then performed on a range of conditions representing seasonal temperature change characteristics. The results indicated that the average freezing temperature and the number of cycles of freezing and thawing were the primary influencing factors for the wall behavior. Also revealed was that the duration of freezing period does not significantly affect the wall displacement and the lateral earth pressure, and that the earth pressure on the wall does not significantly change due to the freezing and thawing action suggesting that the increase in the wall displacement during the freezing and thawing action may be attributed to degradation of backfill due to the freezing and thawing action.