CAREER: Advanced and Uncertainty-Informed Site Investigation

由该学院早期职业发展（CAREER）奖资助的研究计划通过探索基本土壤关系和与地下数据解释相关的不确定性来提高岩土现场调查的能力。岩土工程现场调查对于安全、经济高效和有弹性的民用基础设施至关重要。然而，这仍然是土木工程实践的一个挑战。现场调查不足是项目预算和时间轴超支或建筑项目保险索赔的主要原因。圆锥贯入试验收集地下数据，并用于整个岩土工程和环境工程实践。当土壤和条件与开发和验证数据解释方法的标准土壤不同时，工程师们谨慎地使用圆锥贯入试验数据。这项研究的结果旨在为工程师提供一个更有能力的现场调查框架，通过（1）从标准和非标准土壤类型的静力触探试验数据中估计高级工程参数，从而使工程师能够利用数据做更多的工作，以及（2）量化与标准和非标准土壤现场调查数据相关的不确定性，从而使工程师能够将不确定性传播到基础设施的预测性能，并评估附加数据的价值。该项目将研究与社区学院转学生的教育和推广计划相结合，旨在增加成功转入四年制土木工程课程并毕业的学生人数。该项目将支持当地社区学院的外联活动，组织年度转学生研讨会，包括研究实验室图尔斯参观和外联演示，并接待社区学院本科转学生担任研究实习生职位。这项研究将通过检查静力触探期间的基本土壤-荷载相互作用和表征土壤参数估计产生的不确定性来推进现场调查方法。本研究的目的是（i）调查土壤类型，土壤性质，初始条件，临界州线的位置和形状之间的关系，和锥贯入试验数据，（ii）调查的不确定性量化的锥贯入试验为基础的土壤参数解释在标准和非标准土壤，和（iii）探讨不确定性量化和数据同化在更广泛的背景下，现场调查。先进的实验室测试，一个系统级的计算静力触探模型，和物理静力触探试验的集成程序将表征土壤的临界州线和初始状态的静力触探试验数据的基本作用。本次调查的预期结果是一个临界状态线为基础的解释方法，将开发和验证范围内的标准和非标准土壤的锥贯入试验数据。将使用土壤特性和现场调查信息的大型数据集来调查与现场调查数据的土壤参数估计相关的不确定性。该评估将为不确定性知情现场调查提供一个框架，将现场测试的不确定性传播到设计和预测性能，使工程师能够在工程判断的同时使用可量化的指标进行现场调查决策。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Research funded by this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award plans to advance the capability of geotechnical site investigation by exploring fundamental soil relationships and the uncertainty associated with subsurface data interpretation. Geotechnical site investigation is critical to safe, cost-efficient, and resilient civil infrastructure. However, it remains a challenge for civil engineering practice. Insufficient site investigation is a primary reason for project budget and timeline overruns or insurance claims on construction projects. The cone penetration test collects subsurface data and is used throughout geotechnical and environmental engineering practice. Engineers use cone penetration test data cautiously when soils and conditions vary from the standard soils that data interpretation methods were developed and validated with. Findings from this research are intended to provide engineers with a more capable framework for site investigation by (1) estimating advanced engineering parameters from cone penetration test data for standard and non-standard soil types, therefore allowing engineers to do more with the data, and (2) quantifying uncertainties associated with site investigation data for both standard and non-standard soils, therefore enabling engineers to propagate uncertainties to predicted performance of infrastructure, and evaluate the value of additional data. This project integrates research with an education and outreach program for community college transfer students that aims to increase the number of students who successfully transfer to and graduate from four-year Civil Engineering programs. The project will support outreach events at local community colleges, organization of an annual transfer student workshop, including research lab tours and outreach demonstrations, and hosting undergraduate community college transfer students in research intern positions.This research will advance site investigation methods by examining fundamental soil-load interactions during cone penetration testing and characterizing uncertainties stemming from soil parameter estimation. The objectives of this research are to (i) investigate relationships between soil type, soil properties, initial conditions, critical state line position and shape, and cone penetration test data, (ii) investigate uncertainty quantification for cone penetration test-based soil parameter interpretation in standard and non-standard soils, and (iii) explore uncertainty quantification and data assimilation in the broader context of site investigation. An integrated program of advanced laboratory testing, a system-level computational cone penetration model, and physical cone penetration tests will characterize the fundamental role of the soil critical state line and initial state on cone penetration test data. The anticipated outcome of this investigation is a critical state line-based interpretation approach for cone penetration test data that will be developed and validated across a range of standard and non-standard soils. A large dataset of soil properties and site investigation information will be used to investigate uncertainty associated with soil parameter estimation from site investigation data. This assessment will enable a framework for uncertainty-informed site investigation that will propagate uncertainties from site tests to design and predicted performance, enabling engineers to use quantifiable metrics for site investigation decisions alongside their engineering judgment.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.