Coupled processes in geomaterial degradation and instability with special reference to soil-environment interaction

基础设施的安全运行和经济设计，如大坝、高速公路路面和市政设施，包括污水和供水管道，对加拿大的经济发展极其重要。由于观察到气候变化的影响，应调整传统的岩土工程技术，以适应与环境和气候变化有关的潜在风险(例如，广泛的降水、较温暖的冬季和更多的冻融循环、北方永久冻土的退化)。例如，由于反复的交通荷载和季节性环境变化(如冻融、干湿)导致的路面路基土壤退化，每年要花费数百万美元来维持加拿大高速公路的良好状况。 研究方案的主要目的是调查环境变化对土壤变形和破坏的影响及其对在土壤上建造的基础设施功能的影响。这项研究包括对土壤在冻融和/或干湿循环中的行为进行的实验研究和计算机模拟。将开发计算机模型和工具来模拟环境变化引起的岩土结构(如斜坡和高速公路路面)性能的变化，以便工程师可以调整他们的设计以适应或减轻气候变化对这些结构的影响。 拟议的研究是独一无二的，因为它考虑了环境变化对岩土基础设施性能的影响。结果将为可靠和经济的结构设计以及修复和维护现有基础设施提供有效工具，以适应不同的环境条件。这项工作将涉及研究生，他们将在项目结束时成为高素质的研究人员。

Safe operation and economic design of infrastructure, such as dams, highway pavements, and municipal utilities including sewage and water supply pipelines, are extremely important for Canadian economic development. Owing to observed impact of climate change, the conventional geotechnical engineering technologies should be adapted to accommodate the potential risk associated with environmental and climate change (e.g., extensive precipitation, milder winters and increased number of freeze-thaw cycles, degradation of permafrost in the North). For example, degradation of pavement subgrade soils owing to repetitive traffic loading and seasonal environmental change (e.g., freezing-thawing, drying-wetting) costs millions of dollars every year for maintaining the Canadian highways in good condition. The main purposes of the research proposal are to investigate the impact of environmental change on the deformation and failure of soil and its influence on the function of infrastructures built on the soil. This research consists of both experimental study and computer modelling for the behaviour of soil when it is exposed to freeze-thaw and/or wetting-drying cycles. Computer models and tools will be developed to simulate the variation of performance of geotechnical structures (such as slopes and highway pavements) induced by environmental change, so that the engineers can either adapt their designs to accommodate or mitigate the impact of climate change on these structures. The proposed research is unique in that it accounts for the impact of environmental change on the performance of geotechnical infrastructure. The results will provide effective tools for reliable and economic design of structures as well as rehabilitation and maintenance of existing infrastructure to accommodate varying environmental conditions. The work will involve graduate students who will become highly qualified researchers at the end of the program.