{"title":"Relevance of adopting a double porosity retention curve for modelling bentonite hydration under high temperature conditions","authors":"Laura Asensio, Gema Urraca, Vicente Navarro","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100684","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100684","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aims to gain a better understanding of the coupled thermo-hydraulic effects of the water retention formulation in compacted bentonites, and especially of a double porosity formulation. To this end, several thermo-hydraulic laboratory tests have been simulated with a thermo-hydro-mechanical model using three different water retention formulations: single porosity, single porosity with temperature dependence and double porosity. The results indicate that the impact of including temperature dependence in a single porosity model is limited. In addition, for the case that combines intense heating (150 ºC) with hydration, only the double porosity model produced quality results, even if it did not include a direct dependence on temperature. Differentiation between microstructural and macrostructural water is key to reproducing the thermally induced drying and exhaustion of the flow channels observed in these conditions and not under moderate heating. Therefore, double porosity formulations for the water retention behaviour of bentonites are especially advisable to represent the coupled thermo-hydraulic effects in conditions combining intense heating with hydration, as in deep geological repositories of spent nuclear fuel.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100684"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144084628","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Roa’a AL-Masri , Camilo Sanchez-Avellaneda , Youjun Deng , Leonardo do Nascimento Guimarães , Jeffery Greathouse , Edward Matteo , Marcelo Sanchez
{"title":"Effect of pore fluid chemistry on the mechanical behavior of a divalent compacted bentonite, an experimental and constitutive study","authors":"Roa’a AL-Masri , Camilo Sanchez-Avellaneda , Youjun Deng , Leonardo do Nascimento Guimarães , Jeffery Greathouse , Edward Matteo , Marcelo Sanchez","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100683","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100683","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ongoing research in isolating high-level nuclear waste and spent fuel has highlighted compacted bentonite as a suitable material for engineered barrier systems in deep geological repositories due to its extraordinary swelling and retention properties. This research focuses on the chemo-mechanical behavior of compacted bentonite exposed to different pore fluids with different concentrations and loading conditions. The study involves swelling pressure and compressibility experiments along with mineralogy analysis employing X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Cation exchange. The tests were conducted on BCV (a Mg/Ca- bentonite) compacted at a dry density of 1.48 ± .02 Mg/m<sup>3</sup>. An advanced chemical-mechanical constitutive model for unsaturated highly expansive clays was adopted to simulate the material response and better understand its behavior. The model is able to account for the main phenomena at both macro and microstructural levels and the interactions between them. The model successfully replicated experimental observations. The XRD analyses support the macroscopic observation, indicating that salinity impacts crystalline swelling as demonstrated by the reduction of basal spacing from 19.27 Å to 15.68 Å when the osmotic suction increases from 0 MPa to 33 MPa. The results suggested that the osmotic pressure generated by the concentration in the pore fluids promotes a reduction in swelling pressures, swelling strains, and crystalline swelling of clay minerals. Also, it affects the pre-consolidation stress and the compressibility of the compacted samples. It was also observed that both solution type and solution concentration impact the clay swelling pressure.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100683"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144090427","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jinquan Shi , Lei Zhang , Kebin Ren , Hao Cui , Yang Yang , Yuanjian Liu , Lin Ye , Jianwei Zhang
{"title":"Experimental investigation on biocementation materials in earthen heritage reinforcement","authors":"Jinquan Shi , Lei Zhang , Kebin Ren , Hao Cui , Yang Yang , Yuanjian Liu , Lin Ye , Jianwei Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100682","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100682","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The reinforcement and repair materials for earthen sites have high requirements for strength, resistance to deterioration, and aesthetic coordination. In this study, the enzyme-induced carbonate precipitation (EICP) and the microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) techniques were used to reinforce the earthen site soil. The applicability of EICP and MICP for stabilizing earthen sites soil was investigated through static contact angle tests, disintegration tests and colorimetry tests. In addition, the improvement of mechanical properties of biotreated earthen sites soil was examined by unconfined compression strength tests. The tests results show that MICP and EICP techniques could improve the mechanical characteristics and water-stability properties of the earthen sites soil. With the increase in cementing solution concentration, the effectiveness of EICP was enhanced, while the water-stability and hydrophobicity of MICP-treated soils increased first and then decreased due to the influences of organic matter and soluble salts. EICP and MICP techniques showed different performance in reinforcing effects on calcium carbonate content, shear wave velocity, unconfined compressive peak strength, total disintegration time, and static contact angle. This study is expected to contribute valuable insights to the conservation of earthen heritage site using bio-based methods.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100682"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143936640","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Andrew Minto , Anthony K. Leung , Jonathan A. Knappett
{"title":"The effect of climate change on the behaviour of thermo-active diaphragm walls","authors":"Andrew Minto , Anthony K. Leung , Jonathan A. Knappett","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100681","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100681","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Energy geo-structures are becoming more common as a renewable energy solution which utilises shallow geothermal energy to provide heating and cooling to buildings and civil infrastructure projects. Previous studies have shown that diaphragm walls subjected to combined thermo-mechanical loading show overall increases in lateral displacements, bending moments, shear forces, axial forces, and settlements on the retained side with thermal cycles. This study uses a variation of a validated numerical model to predict the behaviour of thermo-active diaphragm walls in the longer-term including accounting for the influence of climate change under contrasting RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenarios. This numerical model also assesses the impact of different modelling assumptions on the model output by comparing a simplified (isothermal boundary condition) model with a more complex model where atmospheric temperatures affecting ground temperatures are included, to inform the interpretation of physical model test data which typically use isothermal (simplified) boundary conditions. The results from this study show increases in lateral displacement, maximum bending moments, positive and negative shear forces and axial forces (compressive and tensile). Significantly, the RCP2.6 model shows that these increases begin to stabilise over the 50-year period modelled, while under RCP8.5, values continue to increase linearly at the end of the modelling period. The study also demonstrates the importance of capturing realistic model boundary conditions in long term studies. The more simplified model underestimates lateral displacements and internal stresses. The underestimation of lateral displacements is significant as this is the main driver of settlements on the retained side of the wall and has been identified as one of the most critical factors affecting long term performance of thermo-active embedded retaining walls.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100681"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143911510","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Guillermo A. Narsilio , Enrique Romero , Jose Alvarellos , Anne-Catherine Dieudonné , Farimah Masrouri , Vincenzo De Gennaro
{"title":"Bridging knowledge between unsaturated geomechanics and energy geotechnics","authors":"Guillermo A. Narsilio , Enrique Romero , Jose Alvarellos , Anne-Catherine Dieudonné , Farimah Masrouri , Vincenzo De Gennaro","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100680","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100680","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The crucial interaction between lessons learned from the study of unsaturated soil mechanics and energy geotechnics was highlighted at the recent third edition of the International Symposium on Energy Geotechnics (SEG23), held in Delft, the Netherlands. This short communication summarises the discussion that revolved around handling the many issues raised by the current energy transition from fossil fuels to more sustainable and renewable resources, and the need to integrate unsaturated soil knowledge into energy geotechnics. The panel discussion at the symposium emphasised how crucial it is to use the fundamental concepts of unsaturated soil mechanics for a range of energy applications to be able to characterise key underlying multi-phase processes and enable efficient design. With representatives from around the world, the panel discussion’s goal was to close the gap between theoretical research and real-world applications by fostering a dialogue between academics and industry, thereby advancing creative and sustainable geotechnical solutions. The understandings generated from this conversation highlighted the necessity of ongoing cooperation and knowledge sharing to propel area developments and successfully address the urgent energy and environmental challenges of our time.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100680"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144068550","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Vicente Navarro , Gema Urraca , Gema De la Morena , Erik Tengblad , Laura Asensio
{"title":"A thermodynamically consistent model of strain coupling in expansive soils","authors":"Vicente Navarro , Gema Urraca , Gema De la Morena , Erik Tengblad , Laura Asensio","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100679","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100679","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This work examines the thermodynamic consistency of the relationship between the strains caused by the rearrangement of the microstructure in an expansive soil and the coupled plastic strains caused by the resulting rearrangement of the macrostructure (strain coupling). Assuming a multi-dissipative process, it is found that, for the energy variation associated with the mass exchange between macro- and microstructure to be consistent with the macroscopic strain dissipation, the strain coupling is determined by the macro- and microstructural constitutive relations, without the need to introduce new and additional external functions to define the coupling. This results in a robust definition of the coupling function under isotropic conditions, with a structure independent of the adopted constitutive models, which consequently does not have to be adjusted heuristically depending on the type of material, the test or whether microstructural swelling or shrinkage occurs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100679"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143903864","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"3D numerical modelling and analysis of heat harvesting and pavement temperature regulation of a thermo-active road","authors":"Junjia Lyu, Nikolas Makasis, Liang Cui, Benyi Cao","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100678","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100678","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Thermo-active roads are a relatively new and underdeveloped type of energy geostructures. It involves two sets of horizontally placed pipes at different depths to exchange heat between the pavement surface and the ground. Thereby, thermal energy can be stored into the ground beneath the road in summer and can be extracted and used to heat up the road surface in winter to reduce freeze-thaw cycles. This research focuses on the development of a detailed three-dimensional (3D) finite-element (FE) model in COMSOL Multiphysics to explore the thermal performance of a thermo-active road. The 3D FE model developed was extensively validated against the experimental data from a full-scale field test undertaken in Toddington, UK. The validated model is further employed to analyse the effects of soil thermal conductivity, embedded depth of pipes, fluid flow rate and insulation layer on energy harvesting and extracting efficiency of the geothermal system. System optimisation is proposed based on the analysis. Results show that the embedded depth of storage pipes influences the energy harvesting efficiency the most, with energy storage increasing by 1.75 times when the embedded depth of storage pipes increased by 1.6 m. Higher soil thermal conductivity led to a higher energy harvesting efficiency of the system as well. The energy storage value increases from 0.56 to 0.86 MWh when soil thermal conductivity increased from 0.4 to 2.0 W⁄(m∙K). This research study indicates that this system can regulate road temperature, thereby potentially preventing road rutting in summer and freeze-thaw cycles in winter and extending its lifespan.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100678"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143890700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yixin Liu , Yan Gao , Gang Wang , Weimin Cheng , Chuanhua Xu , Jiaxin Cheng
{"title":"Development of experimental system for rock anisotropic seepage under true triaxial stress","authors":"Yixin Liu , Yan Gao , Gang Wang , Weimin Cheng , Chuanhua Xu , Jiaxin Cheng","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100677","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100677","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In order to study the mechanical properties and anisotropic seepage behavior of rocks under complex stress conditions in deep strata, an anisotropic seepage dynamic monitoring system for true triaxial stress conditions was developed. In the process of research and development, four key technologies have been successfully broken through: (1) the use of an independently designed sealing system ensures complete sealing during seepage experiments, reduces experimental errors, and eliminates the edge effect through the six-axis linkage technology; (2) the specially designed multifunctional platen is capable of hydraulic fracturing, seepage, and data acquisition in the true triaxial experiments; (3) Integrated acoustic emission and seepage monitoring system, which can realize real-time dynamic monitoring of crack extension and seepage evolution under real triaxial stress conditions; (4) The control system supports real triaxial stress loading of up to 280 MPa, and it has a stress response sensitivity of 0.5 kPa/s, which ensures high-precision loading and monitoring. The crack extension modes of rocks under true triaxial stress conditions were systematically studied to reveal the dynamic relationship between crack extension and seepage paths. The results show that cracks preferentially extend in the direction of maximum principal stress, leading to a significant increase in seepage rate, while seepage rate lags in the direction of minimum principal stress due to the crack closure effect. A nonlinear \"rise-decline-rise\" dynamic relationship was observed between crack extension and seepage rate. This study provides new insights into the coupling mechanism between crack extension and seepage behavior under complex stress conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100677"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-04-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143869424","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Wenpu Li , Yaoguang Chen , Guorui Feng , Xingxing Xie , Minda Zhang , Zhiyuan Tian , Huan Zhang , Tao Wang , Ruiqing Hao , Yun Bai
{"title":"Triaxial unloading effects on pre-holed sandstone energy characteristics and damage evolution mechanism: Comparative analysis of diffrent borehole bottom locations","authors":"Wenpu Li , Yaoguang Chen , Guorui Feng , Xingxing Xie , Minda Zhang , Zhiyuan Tian , Huan Zhang , Tao Wang , Ruiqing Hao , Yun Bai","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100676","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100676","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Studying the failure mechanism of roof sandstone under the influence of drilling unloading and mining disturbance is crucial for preventing roof disasters and achieving safe and efficient mining in coal mines. Therefore, this research conducted unloading tests on sandstone with different borehole bottom location under varying radial stress gradients. First, the deformation and acoustic emission (AE) characteristics of sandstone during unloading were analyzed for different borehole bottom location. Next, the plastic and energy characteristics of the sandstone were examined and explained based on statistical damage theory. Finally, the damage mechanisms of sandstone under drilling pressure relief and support in the goaf with different borehole bottom location were discussed. The results indicate that different radial stress gradients have a detrimental effect on the mechanical properties of sandstone, and the depth of the hole exhibits a nonlinear degradation effect on these properties. By employing a damage constitutive model, energy evolution and acoustic emission characteristics validated the nonlinear degradation related to the borehole bottom location and effectively reflected the internal crack propagation in the rock. Appropriate borehole bottom location and support measures can effectively prevent roof fracturing while maintaining economic efficiency. This study aims to effectively mitigate damage to the roof under the influence of drilling unloading and mining disturbance, ensuring safe and efficient mining operations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100676"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-04-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143888142","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Study on the interaction between pile and soil under lateral load in coral sand","authors":"Bingxiang Yuan , Qingyu Huang , Weiyuan Xu , Zejun Han , Qingzi Luo , Guorong Chen , Junhong Yuan , Qiyong Zhang , Sabri Mohanad Muayad Sabri","doi":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100674","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gete.2025.100674","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In complex marine environments, research on the response of single piles to lateral loads under different coral sand grain sizes and different embedment depths of the pile body is relatively limited. This study employed indoor scaled-model tests combined with PIV technology, focusing on two variables: coral sand particle sizes and embedment depths of rigid piles. The effects on the bending moment of single piles, the resistance of coral sand, and the displacement of the pile shaft and pile top in coral sand layers were analyzed. The study also revealed the distribution and development patterns of horizontal strain in coral sand particles around the pile top when subjected to lateral loads. The results showed that, as particle size decreased, the maximum bending moment of the pile and the resistance of coral sand increased, the rotation point of pile displacement rose, and pile top displacement increased. In addition, smaller particles had weaker interlocking, resulting in less effective force chain transmission and lower load diffusion. When the embedment depth of the rigid pile decreased, lateral loads could not be transferred to deeper soil layers, leading to more noticeable displacements at the pile shaft and pile top.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56008,"journal":{"name":"Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment","volume":"42 ","pages":"Article 100674"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143826154","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}