Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves

The soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC) is widely used as a tool in geotechnical, geo-environmental, hydrology, and soil science fields for predicting and interpreting hydro-mechanical behaviors of unsaturated soils. Several previous studies focused on investigating the influence of initial water...

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Main Authors: Yao Li, Roberto Alves, Sai Vanapalli, Gilson Gitirana
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-01-01
Series:Geosciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/14/2/38
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author Yao Li
Roberto Alves
Sai Vanapalli
Gilson Gitirana
author_facet Yao Li
Roberto Alves
Sai Vanapalli
Gilson Gitirana
author_sort Yao Li
collection DOAJ
description The soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC) is widely used as a tool in geotechnical, geo-environmental, hydrology, and soil science fields for predicting and interpreting hydro-mechanical behaviors of unsaturated soils. Several previous studies focused on investigating the influence of initial water content, stress history, temperature, and salt content on the SWCC behavior. However, there is still limited understanding to be gained from the literature on how we can systematically incorporate the influence of complex thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemo (THMC) effects into interpreting and predicting the behavior of unsaturated soils. To address that knowledge gap, in this study, the coupled influence of temperature, initial stress state, initial density, soil structure, and chemical solution effects was modeled using established SWCC equations from the literature. The methodology for incorporating the coupled effects of these influential factors is presented herein. Furthermore, we evaluated the SWCC models proposed in this study, enabling us to provide a comprehensive discussion of their strengths and limitations, using the published SWCC data from the literature. The developments outlined in this paper contribute toward facilitating a rigorous approach for analyzing the THMC behaviors of unsaturated soils.
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spelling doaj.art-54ad2989aaa24b9db324edd0e0bc9b192024-02-23T15:18:02ZengMDPI AGGeosciences2076-32632024-01-011423810.3390/geosciences14020038Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic CurvesYao Li0Roberto Alves1Sai Vanapalli2Gilson Gitirana3Department of Civil Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, CanadaDepartment of Civil Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, CanadaDepartment of Civil Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, CanadaSchool of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Goias (UFG), Goiânia 74690-900, GO, BrazilThe soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC) is widely used as a tool in geotechnical, geo-environmental, hydrology, and soil science fields for predicting and interpreting hydro-mechanical behaviors of unsaturated soils. Several previous studies focused on investigating the influence of initial water content, stress history, temperature, and salt content on the SWCC behavior. However, there is still limited understanding to be gained from the literature on how we can systematically incorporate the influence of complex thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemo (THMC) effects into interpreting and predicting the behavior of unsaturated soils. To address that knowledge gap, in this study, the coupled influence of temperature, initial stress state, initial density, soil structure, and chemical solution effects was modeled using established SWCC equations from the literature. The methodology for incorporating the coupled effects of these influential factors is presented herein. Furthermore, we evaluated the SWCC models proposed in this study, enabling us to provide a comprehensive discussion of their strengths and limitations, using the published SWCC data from the literature. The developments outlined in this paper contribute toward facilitating a rigorous approach for analyzing the THMC behaviors of unsaturated soils.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/14/2/38soil–water characteristic curveunsaturated soilsthermo-hydro-mechanical-chemo behaviorcoupled effects
spellingShingle Yao Li
Roberto Alves
Sai Vanapalli
Gilson Gitirana
Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves
Geosciences
soil–water characteristic curve
unsaturated soils
thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemo behavior
coupled effects
title Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves
title_full Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves
title_fullStr Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves
title_full_unstemmed Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves
title_short Models for Considering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemo Effects on Soil–Water Characteristic Curves
title_sort models for considering the thermo hydro mechanical chemo effects on soil water characteristic curves
topic soil–water characteristic curve
unsaturated soils
thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemo behavior
coupled effects
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/14/2/38
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