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Title: Coupled Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Modeling of Saturated Boom Clay
Temperature variations in low permeable soil (e.g. clay) induce pore pressure, which is known as thermal pressurization. Previous research showed that thermal pressurization highly depends on thermal pressurization coefficient. This coefficient depends on the soil type and changes with temperature due to temperature dependency of thermal expansion coefficient of water. Thermal pressurization is often investigated through thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) numerical modeling. THM process, with respect to thermal loading, has been examined in the literature to justify the field observations by incorporating advanced thermo-mechanical constitutive models. However, result of numerical simulations using advanced thermo-elastoplastic models still show some discrepancies with experimental and field observations. In this study, the assessment of thermal pressurization in Boom clay is scrutinized through employing a relatively simple while practical thermo-poroelastic finite element model with careful consideration of the temperature-dependent thermal, hydraulic, and mechanical properties of the medium and saturating fluid (i.e. water). The numerical model is carried out using COMSOL Multiphysics and the results of the numerical simulations are compared and validated with the ATLAS project, a large-scale experimental facility in Belgium. The results confirm that thermal and hydraulic coupling parameters are the key factors to change thermal pressurization.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1804822
NSF-PAR ID:
10172357
Author(s) / Creator(s):
;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Geo-Congress 2020
Page Range / eLocation ID:
340 to 348
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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