Thermo-hydro-mechanical behaviour of Hong Kong Marine Clay

Synopsis

In many energy geotechnical facilities, such as submarine pipelines/cables, energy piles/tunnels, the long-term hydro-mechanical properties of surrounding soft soils are significantly affected by temperature, challenging the stability and serviceability of energy structures. Laboratory studies demonstrated that consolidation, compression, and shear characteristics of Hong Kong marine clay are affected by the loading and temperature history. The creep rate depends on the effective stress, strain, and temperature state of the soil. Based on the elastic visco-plastic and critical state mechanics theories, a thermal-elastic-viscoplastic constitutive model is developed. Through finite element method, thermo-hydro-mechanical coupled simulations of several structures in soft soils are further conducted to evaluate the long-term performance.

About the Speaker

Dr Zejian Chen is currently a Research Assistant Professor at Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He obtained his Bachelor’s degree from Zhejiang University (2017) and his PhD from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University…