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An investigation of the microstructure-mechanical property relationships for gray cast iron and a vintage ASTM A7 steel are presented herein. Gray cast iron was shown to have a moderate sensitivity to strain rate and a large disparity in behavior between compression, tension, and torsion. ASTM A7 steel was shown to behave in a more complex manor with the strain rate sensitivity having a negative relationship in tension and positive relationship in compression and torsion, the tensile stress-state producing the highest stress response, and the material producing a higher stress response when exposed to elevated temperatures. The counterintuitive behavior observed in A7 steel was attributed to dynamic strain aging. The Mississippi State University Internal State Variable Plasticity-Damage model was updated to accurately capture negative strain rate sensitivity and DSA embrittlement by developing kinematic, thermodynamic, and kinetic constitutive relationships for dynamic strain aging. A parametric study was performed to elucidate the behavior of the new internal state variable for dynamic strain aging. Gray cast iron was successfully calibrated to a pre-DSA version of the plasticity-damage model and A7 steel was successfully calibrated to the updated plasticity-damage model.

Treten im Beton mehraxiale Spannungszustände auf, führen diese gegenüber einer einaxialen Beanspruchung zu einer signifikanten Änderung des Materialverhaltens. Neben einer festigkeitssteigernden bzw. -abmindernden Wirkung ergeben sich ebenfalls große Unterschiede im Spannungs-Dehnungs-Verhalten. Zur effizienten Konzipierung von Betonstrukturen unter komplexen Beanspruchungszuständen ist daher die Kenntnis des veränderten Materialverhaltens notwendig. Zur experimentellen Bestimmung des Spannungs-Dehnungs-Verhaltens eines Ultrahochleistungsbetons mit einer einaxialen Druckfestigkeit von über 170 N/mm² wurden mehraxiale Belastungsversuche an würfelförmigen Probekörpern durchgeführt. Die Untersuchung umfasste insgesamt 35 zwei- und dreiaxiale Spannungsverhältnisse unter proportionaler Laststeigerung mit vorrangiger Betrachtung von Zug-Druck-Druck-Beanspruchungen. Für die Einleitung der Zugbeanspruchungen in die Prüfkörper wurde eine neue Methode entwickelt, bei der mittels einbetonierter Schrauben die Belastung auf den Beton übertragen wird. Die Bestimmung des Verformungsverhaltens erfolgte im Inneren der Probekörper mit sechs tetraederförmig angeordneten Faser-Bragg-Gittern. Die somit direkt gemessenen Dehnungen ermöglichen die nachträgliche Berechnung der Komponenten des Dehnungstensors des Bezugskoordinatensystems. Für den untersuchten Ultrahochleitsungsbeton fallen die auf die einaxiale Druckfestigkeit bezogenen mehraxialen Festigkeitswerte mit zunehmendem hydrostatischen Druckspannungsanteil der Beanspruchung geringer aus als bei Normalbetonen. Weiterhin weist das Verformungsverhalten eine größere Sprödigkeit gegenüber Normalbetonen auf, so dass auch unter dreiaxialen Druckspannungszuständen die Probekörper schlagartig versagen. Aus den gemessenen Spannungs-Dehnungs-Linien werden neben den maximalen Festigkeiten die Festigkeitswerte an der Elastizitätsgrenze, der Affinitätsgrenze sowie beim Volumenminimum der Probekörper bestimmt. Zur Approximation dieser charakteristischen Werte wurde eine Grenzflächenbeschreibung entwickelt und an den Versuchsergebnissen kalibriert. Des Weiteren erfolgte die Zusammenstellung einer Datenbank mit in der Literatur verfügbaren mehraxialen maximalen Festigkeitswerten von Betonen mit einaxialen Druckfestigkeiten von 10 N/mm² bis 180 N/mm² und die Kalibrierung des entwickelten Modells zur Grenzflächenbeschreibung in Abhängigkeit der einaxialen Druckfestigkeit. Die bei der Kalibrierung der Grenzfläche für einzelne Betonfestigkeitsklassen bestimmten Freiwerte hängen dabei stark von den vorliegenden Versuchsdaten und speziell vom Wertebereich der hydrostatischen Spannungsanteile der maximalen Beanspruchungen ab. Die Approximation des Spannungs-Dehnungs-Verhaltens der mehraxial beanspruchten Probekörper erfolgt mittels eines schädigungsbasierten Materialgesetzes. Hierbei wird für den anfänglich isotropen Beton zum einen eine lastinduzierte isotrope Schädigung und zum anderen eine lastinduzierte orthotrope Schädigung angenommen, die von den auftretenden Hauptdehnungen abhängig ist. Mit dem entwickelten Materialgesetz werden sehr gute Übereinstimmungen mit den gemessenen Spannungs-Dehnungs-Linien erreicht, so dass sich ebenfalls eine gute Vorhersage der maximalen Festigkeitswerte ergibt. / Concrete under multiaxial stress states shows significant changes of the material behaviour compared to uniaxial loading. Besides strength increasing and decreasing effects, also great differences in the stress-strain behaviour occur. In order to design concrete structures efficiently concerning complex stress states, the knowledge about the modified material behaviour is necessary. To determine experimentally the stress-strain behaviour of an ultra high performance concrete with a uniaxial compressive strength of about 170 N/mm², multiaxial loading tests on cubic-shaped specimens were carried out. Altogether, the investigation contained 35 biaxial and triaxial stress ratios under proportionally increasing load with primarily tension-compression-compression loadings. Applying the tensile load on the specimen, a new method was developed, which uses screws embedded in the concrete to transfer the loading. The deformations were measured by using six tetrahedron-shaped arranged Fibre Bragg Gratings inside the concrete specimen. Subsequently, with the directly measured strains the components of the strain tensor of the reference coordinate system could be determined. For the investigated ultra high performance concrete the increase of the multiaxial strength, referring to the uniaxial compressive strength, decreases compared to normal strength concrete with the increasing hydrostatic stress component of the load. Moreover, the deformation behaviour shows an increased brittleness compared to normal strength concrete, so that even under triaxial compressive stress states the specimens fail abruptly. Besides the ultimate strength, from the measured stress-strain curves the strength at the proportional limit, at the limit of affinity as well as at the minimum volume of the specimen is determined. To approximate these characteristic values, a description of a hypersurface is developed and calibrated with the test results. Furthermore, a database with multiaxial ultimate strength values of concretes with uniaxial compressive strengths between 10 N/mm² to 180 N/mm² available from literature was compiled and a calibration of the developed hypersurface model depending on the uniaxial compressive strength was carried out. Thereby, the obtained values of arbitrary parameters of individual concrete strength classes depend severely on the available test results, especially on the range of values of the hydrostatic stress component of the ultimate strength. The approximation of the stress-strain behaviour of the multiaxial loaded specimens is carried out by means of a damage-based material law. For this purpose, concerning the initially isotropic concrete, a load-induced isotropic and orthotropic damage depending on the principle strains is assumed. With the developed material law, very good accordance with the measured stress-strain curves could be achieved, so that also results in a good approximation of the ultimate concrete strength.

This thesis deals with problems of biomechanics of soft tissues, namely of stress-strain analysis of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The introduction describes briefly the possibility of aneurysm occurrence with a focus on an aneurysm in the abdominal aorta.

Gegenstand der Dissertation ist die Entwicklung eines Stoffmodells für duktile Salzgesteine, mit dem alle drei Kriechphasen, abhängig von einem inneren Zustandsparameter, beschrieben werden können. Die Modellierung der Schädigungs- bzw. Dilatanzentwicklung und deren Rückkopplung auf das Kriechverhalten ist das Kernstück der Stoffmodellentwicklung. Es wird eine Beziehung abgeleitet, die die Dilatanzentwicklung abhängig vom Manteldruck und der spezifischen Formänderungsarbeit beschreibt. Durch diese Formulierung und deren Verknüpfung mit dem o. g. Zustandsparameter lassen sich tertiäres Kriechen, Kriechbruch, Nachbruchverhalten und Restfestigkeit geschwindigkeitsabhängig beschreiben. Es erfolgte eine Validierung des Modells anhand von Laboruntersuchungen. Weiter wurden Parametersätze für zwei unterschiedliche Steinsalztypen abgeleitet. Anhand von drei realen Problemstellungen konnte gezeigt werden, dass das gemessene In-situ-Verhalten mit dem Modell berechnet werden kann und Prognoseberechnungen zu plausiblen Ergebnissen führen.

The introductions of large digital computers in the field of engineering have rendered possible the solution of a wide variety of problems without the need to violate the equilibrium and compatibility. The major requirement for such analysis is a good constitutive model that represents the stress strain behaviour of the materials in an accurate way. Nowadays for most of the geotechnical engineering applications the elastoplastic models like Mohr Coulomb model are widely used. All the existing constitutive models which represent the plastic behaviour of soil are developed from the fundamentals of classical theory of plasticity. The classical theory of plasticity is always associated with the concept of yield surface and potential surface to represent the plastic behaviour. The definition of yield surface depends on the location of the yield point. But in practical sense it is very difficult to find out the exact yield point for a material. The expression for yield and potential surfaces are simply mathematical expressions formulated for computational efficiency. Experimentally it is very difficult to find out the yield surface in the case of three dimensional stress spaces. The classical theory of plasticity is developed based on the mechanical process. It is believed that a theory which violates the thermodynamic principle is not able to represent the material behaviour accurately. the initial stage and combined to give the final state of stress. It was proved that the equation proposed by Wu and Wang (1983) can be used to represent the triaxial behaviour of sand very well. The dilation and densification behaviour can be predicted very well with the endochronic constitutive equations. The principal aim of this work is to implement the endochronic constitutive equation in the FLAC3D model library like any other constitutive model and validate it with the triaxial test data. After implementation and validation, the application of the particular constitutive model is extended to some practical geotechnical engineering problems like the stresses and displacements around an underground opening such as tunnels, surface settlement due to shallow tunneling, stress distribution below the footing, settlement analysis of footing on various foundation beds such as sand, clay and sand overlying clay bed, lateral displacement of the secant pile wall due to excavation and the force developed in the horizontal support etc. All the three problems validate the model with the analytical, experimental and field data respectively. The equation proposed by Wu and Wang (1983) is used for the present study. In order to validate the equation proposed by Wu and Wang (1983), MatLab programming is used. The hydrostatic, deviatoric and volumetric behaviour is obtained separately using the concerned equations. The equation is coded in the MatLab and analysis is done for a triaxial element test. Both drained and undrained analyses were done in order to study the behaviour. The pore pressure developed is captured separately with the equation proposed by Geoffrey et al (1975). The results obtained from the analysis of the MatLab were compared with that of the experimental results. The analysis shows that the equation captures the least plastic behaviour well for the triaxial element test. The dilation and densification behaviour obtained using the respective equation shows that it matches well with the experimental results. A parametric study is also conducted in MatLab to see how the parameters affect the stress strain and volumetric behaviour of the sand. The parametric study conducted with the MatLab shows that most of the parameters involved in the equation affect the plastic part of the stress strain curve rather than the initial elastic part. User defined constitutive model was written in visual C++ and compiled as DLL (Dynamic Link Library) files that will be loaded whenever it is needed in FLAC3D. In visual C++, header and source files were written by incorporating the constitutive equation proposed by Wu and Wang (1983), defining the variables and other functions etc, and a dynamic link library is created, which is then integrated into the 3D finite difference code FLAC3D using the CPPUDM module to simulate the stress strain behaviour of the materials. CPPUDM module is an additional option in FLAC3D to implement the user defined constitutive models. The visual C++ code was written in the form of incremental stress strain relationship. The model acts like any other constitutive model in the FLAC3D model library and can be loaded whenever it is required. For the validation of the model in FLAC3D, the data for the MatLab simulation were used. Both drained and undrained tests were simulated with the model. The results obtained from the analysis shows that by suitably selecting the parameters the model can simulate the stress strain behaviour of sand very well. The volumetric and deviatoric behaviour were observed and is matching well with the experimental data. In the case of the undrained test the pore pressure generation is well captured by the equation proposed by Geoffrey et al (1975). In urban areas the construction of shallow tunnels results in excessive settlements of the ground surface and thereby causes damage to the existing above ground structures. In order to minimize the settlements and to reduce the impact due to that, a prior analysis of the displacements and stresses around the opening is very important. Nowadays numerical analysis is widely used for the analysis of such structures. The most important requirement of such analysis is a constitutive model that can represent the unloading behaviour around the tunnel opening of sand very well. Here the endochronic constitutive model implemented in the FLAC3D model library is used to evaluate the stresses and displacements around the tunnel. In the analysis the tunnel is simulated as a cylindrical hole in an infinite medium with the in situ stress. The stresses at the springing line was observed and compared with the analytical solution. The results show that the results are matching well with the analytical results. The comparison of the results with that obtained using the Mohr Coulomb model is also done to see how the model differs from a widely used plastic model. By slightly adjusting the parameters the results obtained from both the models are in well agreement. The strain softening effect which is predominant around an underground opening due to the loosening of soil mass is well captured by the endochronic model compared to the Mohr Coulomb model. The settlement analysis shows that the model is almost in close agreement with the closed form solution proposed by Oteo & Sagaseta (1982) and the results obtained with the Mohr Coulomb model. The settlement trough formed for various shapes is wider and deeper than the Mohr Coulomb model. The vertical stress distribution around the opening of the tunnel is studied with varying the shape of the openings using the proposed constitutive model. The results obtained were compared with that of the Mohr Coulomb model. The slightly higher values in the case of endochronic model are basically due to its plastic nature. The displacement and stresses in the axial direction (along the excavation) is observed with the model. In the case of shallow tunnel the surface get influenced by the loosening of the soil mass which necessitates the use of the support system. The study shows that the model can be used for the simulation of underground opening like tunnel and will capture the behaviour well. Footings are structures used to support the buildings constructed above the ground. The settlement analysis of footings is very important when we consider the stability of the structures supported by it. The vertical stress distribution below the footing is studied using the endochronic constitutive model and compared with the analytical solution proposed by Boussinesq (1885). In the elastic range the model shows matching results with the Boussinesq’s solution. The settlement analysis of footing on various foundation beds such as sand, clay and sand overlying the clay bed were studied using the endochronic constitutive model implemented in the FLAC3D model library. The experimental data conducted in our lab (Sireesh (2006)) was used for the study. The results show that with the chosen parameters the results obtained with the endochronic model are in good agreement with the experimental data. The Mohr Coulomb model over predicts the results. This shows higher modulus value for the Mohr Coulomb model. By conducting the parametric study it was seen that by reducing the value of modulus for the Mohr Coulomb model, the results are in good agreement with the experimental value. The displacement and stress contours obtained for the two models were compared. By analyzing the displacement contours it is seen that the Mohr Coulomb model shows uniform settlement. In the case of endochronic model uniform settlement is observed for about 5% settlement that is in the elastic range. After a certain strain level the displacement contours are tilted more towards one side showing the rotational failure. Here the endochronic model captures the anisotropic behaviour associated with the materials like sand at higher strain level. This result is a concrete evidence that the model can capture the realistic behaviour very well compared to any other model. Even though the model developed is for sand its application can be extended to clay also. The size and shape of the footing is varied to study its effect on the pressure settlement curve. The analysis is done with square shape of 150mm side and circular shape of 150mm diameter. As there is not much variation in the area of influence, the shape has little influence on the pressure settlement curve. As the size of the footing increases the settlement increases for a given pressure. A parametric study is conducted by varying the modulus value used. The study shows that as the modulus value increases, the settlement reduces for a given bearing pressure. The endochronic model analysed with the lower modulus value shows that the model predicts the perfectly plastic behaviour, here the settlement increases for low value of bearing pressure. The application of endochronic model for the simulation of complex geotechnical engineering problems like footings is highly explored in the study. Nowadays most of the infrastructure facilities are concentrated towards the underground space. The excavation and construction of such structures in the urban areas results in damage to the existing above ground structures if the construction is done in close proximity to the structures. In the present study a staged excavation of an underground construction for the Bangalore metro project is simulated with the endochronic constitutive model. In the Bangalore metro project the excavation for the underground station is done at the cricket stadium site. At the site there are two major buildings such as the six storied Hindustan Aeronautical Limited building and 100 years old BSNL masonry building. To minimize the impact on these structures were a major concern during the construction of the work. A robust support system consists of secant pile walls, soldier piles and horizontal struts are installed at the site. The OSV method known as the Onsite Visualization and monitoring is conducted to minimize the damage to the existing structures and the accidents at the construction site. Sensors are connected to LEDs which show change in color when the displacements and forces cross the triggered value. The field instrumentation is done with inclinometers, tilt meters and strain gauges connected to the sensors to observe the lateral deformation of the secant pile wall, tilt of the HAL building and the forces developed in the horizontal struts. The monitoring of field data is done for a period of five months from July to November. From the analysis of the field observed data it is clear that the support system provided were strong enough to resist the forces due to unloading. The lateral deformation of the secant pile wall and the forces developed in the strut were numerically analysed using the endochronic constitutive model and the results were compared with the field monitored data. The results show that the model captures the behaviour very close to the field data for a slightly higher modulus than that reported in the geotechnical report (BMRC report). This may be due to the fact that the value of modulus calculated experimentally might have some error. The analysis with the Mohr Coulomb model shows that the model over predicts the results very close to the surface of the excavation. This indicates that the influence of load is more on that particular depth for the Mohr Coulomb model. But the stiffness of the lateral support system is uniform throughout the depth; the endochronic model predicts the result more accurately than the Mohr Coulomb model. The strut forces developed in the horizontal support system is observed using the two models. The strut forces in the field is affected by so many factors such as the temperature variation, stages of excavation and other live loads acting on the site, so an exact comparison with the field data is quite difficult. The analysis shows that even though it is difficult to simulate the exact three dimensional nature of the problem in the present study the endochronic constitutive model captures the behaviour very well. The results obtained shows that the endochronic constitutive model implemented in the FLAC3D model library provides a very promising solution like any other constitutive model. As the theory is based on the irreversible law of thermodynamics and the formulation of the constitutive equation are based on the internal energy concept it can represent the material behaviour in accordance with the laws of continuum mechanics. The anisotropic behaviour of soil at higher strain level is well represented through the footing problem. The endochronic constitutive model is a very simple one to simulate the stress strain behaviour of the materials without the concept of yield surface; the parameters used in the equation can be obtained directly from a single triaxial stress strain plot. This study highlights the importance of a model without the concept of yield surface to capture the stress strain behaviour of any materials. Since the model is of completely plastic nature it has its own uniqueness in capturing the material behaviour due to loading and unloading.

Gegenstand der Dissertation ist die Entwicklung eines Stoffmodells für duktile Salzgesteine, mit dem alle drei Kriechphasen, abhängig von einem inneren Zustandsparameter, beschrieben werden können. Die Modellierung der Schädigungs- bzw. Dilatanzentwicklung und deren Rückkopplung auf das Kriechverhalten ist das Kernstück der Stoffmodellentwicklung. Es wird eine Beziehung abgeleitet, die die Dilatanzentwicklung abhängig vom Manteldruck und der spezifischen Formänderungsarbeit beschreibt. Durch diese Formulierung und deren Verknüpfung mit dem o. g. Zustandsparameter lassen sich tertiäres Kriechen, Kriechbruch, Nachbruchverhalten und Restfestigkeit geschwindigkeitsabhängig beschreiben. Es erfolgte eine Validierung des Modells anhand von Laboruntersuchungen. Weiter wurden Parametersätze für zwei unterschiedliche Steinsalztypen abgeleitet. Anhand von drei realen Problemstellungen konnte gezeigt werden, dass das gemessene In-situ-Verhalten mit dem Modell berechnet werden kann und Prognoseberechnungen zu plausiblen Ergebnissen führen.

[ES] La técnica de "Soil Nailing" es un procedimiento de refuerzo del terreno utilizado continuamente en la estabilización de taludes y cortes del terreno en proyectos de ingeniería geotécnica. Esta técnica se aplica con frecuencia en la ciudad de Quito (Ecuador) para el refuerzo del terreno, mejorando la estabilidad de los taludes, durante el proceso de excavación de varios niveles de sótanos. Estas excavaciones de gran profundidad son habituales en proyectos inmobiliarios importantes de la ciudad, en los que el "Soil Nailing" se emplea con algunas variantes que la ajusten a los recursos constructivos disponibles en el medio. Pese a lo extendido de su uso, esta técnica, que ha resultado ser efectiva para estabilizar las excavaciones durante los procesos constructivos de estructuras de sótano en los suelos de la ciudad de Quito, actualmente dispone de pocas investigaciones locales, ya sean teóricas, numéricas o experimentales, basadas en las propiedades geotécnicas de los suelos volcánicos característicos de la ciudad. Esta Tesis Doctoral que contó con el soporte del Laboratorio de Ingeniería Geotécnica y el Laboratorio de Estructuras del Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología del Hormigón (ICITECH) de la Universitat Politècnica de València presenta un estudio experimental y numérico del comportamiento de dos excavaciones reforzadas con la técnica de "Soil Nailing" para la construcción de las estructuras de sótano de dos importantes edificios ubicados en la zona centro-norte de la ciudad de Quito. Tanto el estudio experimental como el numérico se enfocan principalmente en la evolución de las fuerzas de tensión en las barras de acero de los "Soil Nails", el análisis de desplazamientos horizontales de las pantallas y el análisis de asentamientos en el terreno que se encuentra detrás de las pantallas y que fueron inferidos por la construcción de cada nivel de sótano. Como parte del análisis numérico a través de elementos finitos se han considerado diferentes modelos constitutivos de suelo, cuyos parámetros se determinaron detalladamente de acuerdo a los ensayos de laboratorio del estudio de caracterización geotécnica de esta investigación. Por tanto, esta Tesis Doctoral constituye una de las primeras investigaciones completas de la región encaminada a explicar el comportamiento experimental y numérico de excavaciones mediante la técnica de "Soil Nailing" y respaldada con un completo trabajo de caracterización geotécnica, llevado a cabo a propósito como parte de este estudio. / [CA] La tècnica de "Soil Nailing" és un procediment de reforç del terreny utilitzat contínuament en l'estabilització de talussos i talls del terreny en projectes d'enginyeria geotècnica. Esta tècnica s'aplica ben sovint en la ciutat de Quito (Equador) per al reforç del terreny, millorant l'estabilitat dels talussos, durant el procés d'excavació de diversos nivells de soterranis. Estes excavacions de gran profunditat són habituals en projectes immobiliaris importants de la ciutat, en els que el "Soil Nailing" s'empra amb algunes variants que l'ajusten als recursos constructius disponibles en el mig. A pesar d'allò que s'ha estés del seu ús, esta tècnica que ha resultat ser efectiva per a estabilitzar les excavacions durant els processos constructius d'estructures de soterrani en els sòls de la ciutat de Quito, actualment disposa de poques investigacions locals, ja siguen teòriques, numèriques o experimentals basades en les propietats geotècniques dels sòls volcànics característics de la ciutat. Esta Tesi Doctoral que va comptar amb el suport del Laboratori d'Enginyeria Geotècnica i el Laboratori d'Estructures de l'Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia del Formigó (ICITECH) de la Universitat Politècnica de València presenta un estudi experimental i numèric del comportament de dos excavacions reforçades amb la tècnica del "Soil Nailing" per a la construcció de les estructures de soterrani de dos importants edificis ubicats en la zona centre-nord de la ciutat de Quito. Tant l'estudi experimental com el numèric s'enfoquen principalment en l'evolució de les forces de tensió en les barres d'acer dels "Soil Nailing", l'anàlisi de desplaçaments horitzontals de les pantalles i l'anàlisi d'assentaments en el terreny que es troba darrere de les pantalles i que van ser inferits per la construcció de cada nivell de soterrani. Com a part de l'anàlisi numèrica a través d'elements finits s'han considerat diferents models constitutius de sòl, els paràmetres de la qual es van determinar detalladament d'acord amb els assajos de laboratori de l'estudi de caracterització geotècnica d'esta investigació. Per tant, esta Tesi Doctoral constituïx una de les primeres investigacions completes de la regió encaminada a explicar el comportament experimental i numèric d'excavacions per mitjà de la tècnica del "Soil Nailing" i protegida amb un complet treball de caracterització geotècnica, dut a terme a propòsit com a part d'este estudi. / [EN] The "Soil Nailing" technique is a ground reinforcement procedure used consistently to stabilize slopes and land sections in geotechnical engineering projects. This technique is frequently used in the city of Quito (Ecuador) to reinforce the ground and improve slope stability during the excavation process for various underground parking levels. Such deep excavations are common in the city's most important real estate projects, in which "Soil Nailing" is used with different variations that are adjusted in accordance with the construction resources available in the particular environment. Despite its widespread use, this technique which has proven to be so effective in stabilizing excavations during the construction of underground structures in the soils of the city of Quito, currently suffers from a lack of local theoretical, numerical or experimental research based on the geotechnical properties of the city's characteristic soils. This Doctoral Thesis was supported by the Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory and the Structures Laboratory of the Concrete Science and Technology Institute (ICITECH) of the Universitat Politècnica de València. It presents an experimental and numerical study of the behavior of two excavations reinforced with the Soil Nailing technique for the construction of the basement structures of two important buildings located in the north-central area of the city of Quito. Both the experimental and the numerical study focus mainly on the stress of tension forces exerted on the steel bars of the "Soil Nails", analysis of horizontal wall displacements and analysis of settlements of the ground behind the walls, which were induced by the construction of each underground level. As part of the numerical analysis through finite elements, different constitutive soil models were considered, the parameters of which were determined in detail in accordance with laboratory testing from the geotechnical characterization study for this research. This Doctoral Thesis, therefore, constitutes one of the first complete studies in the region aimed at explaining the experimental and numerical behavior of excavations through the Soil Nailing technique, supported by complete geotechnical characterization work which was carried out for the purpose of forming part of this study. / Capa Guachón, VE. (2021). Estudio experimental y numérico del comportamiento de excavaciones ejecutadas mediante la técnica de suelo claveteado (soil nailing) en suelos de la ciudad de Quito (Ecuador) [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/164174 / TESIS

This thesis deals with problems of biomechanics of soft tissues, namely of stress-strain analysis of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The introduction describes briefly the possibility of aneurysm occurrence with a focus on an aneurysm in the abdominal aorta.

Excavations in soft clays come with a number of specific challenges. The use of lime-cement columns in the passive zone of such works represents a promising solution to some of these problems, such as basal heave stability or excessive deformations. Nevertheless, lime-cement columns in the passive zone of excavations in soft clays are not yet widely used and studied. Knowledge about this improvement method is still limited, particularly when it comes to numerical modelling. They have mostly been studied numerically using simple geometries or constitutive models that do not allow to represent the key features of the material, that could influence the behaviour of the structure. Thus, there is a need for more investigations regarding precise modelling tools for this type of problems. In this study, an advanced constitutive model named the Concrete model was employed to capture the mechanical behaviour of the lime-cement improved soil material. A boundary value problem representing an excavation in soft clay supported by sheet pile walls and lime-cement columns was studied using a three dimensional finite element model that included the Concrete model for lime-cement column panels. The results show that the Concrete model is able to capture the behaviour of lime-cement improved clay very well. Key features such as strain hardening and strain softening are well represented. The results of the boundary value problem were compared to field measurements and it was showed that the Concrete model employed in a three dimensional finite element representation of the problem is able to give realistic results. / Schakter i lös lera medför ett antal specifika utmaningar. Användningen av kalk-cementpelare i den passiva zonen i sådana fallen är en lovande lösning på några av dessa problem, t.ex. jordhävning eller stora deformationer. Kalk-cement pelare i den passiva zonen av schakter i lös lera har dock ännu inte använts och studerats i någon större utsträckning i Sverige. Kunskapen om denna metod är fortfarande begränsad, särskilt när det gäller numerisk modellering. Denna förstärkningsmetod har studerats numeriskt med hjälp av enkla geometrier eller konstitutiva modeller som inte gör det möjligt att representera materialets viktigaste egenskaper som kan påverka konstruktionens beteende. Det finns därför ett behov av mer forskning för en precis modellering för denna typ av problem. I den här studien användes en avancerad konstitutiv modell (Concrete model) för att simulera det mekaniska beteendet hos det kalkcementstabiliserade jordmaterialet. Ett gränsvärdesproblem som representerar en schakt i lös lera som stöds av spontväggar och kalkcementpelare studerades med hjälp av en tredimensionell finita elementmodell. Resultaten visar att den advancerade konstitutiva modellen kan simulera beteendet hos kalkcementstabiliserad lera mycket väl. Viktiga egenskaper som t.ex. töjningshärdning och töjningsuppmjukning är väl representerade. Resultaten av gränsvärdesproblemet modellering jämfördes med fältmätningar och det visades att konstitutiva modellen som används kan ge realistiska resultat. / Les excavations dans les argiles molles présentent de nombreuses difficultés. L’utilisation de colonnes en chaux-ciment dans la zone passive de ces structures représente une solution prometteuse à certains de ces défis, tels que le soulèvement de la base ou les déformations excessives. Néanmoins, l’utilisation et l’étude des colonnes en chaux-ciment dans la zone passive des excavations dans les argiles molles ne sont pas généralisées et les connaissances à ce sujet sont encore limitées, notamment en ce qui concerne la modélisation numérique. La plupart des études numériques se basent sur des géométries simples ou des modèles constitutifs ne permettant pas de représenter certaines particularités du comportement du matériau, qui pourraient influencer le comportement de la structure. Il est donc nécessaire d’approfondir les recherches sur les outils de modélisation pour ce type de problème. Dans cette étude, un modèle constitutif avancé (Concrete model) a été utilisé pour reproduire le comportement mécanique de l’argile stabilisée à la chaux et au ciment. Un problème de valeurs aux limites représentant une excavation dans de l’argile molle soutenue par des murs de palplanches et des colonnes en chaux-ciment a été étudié à l’aide d’un modèle d’éléments finis tridimensionnel. Les résultats montrent que le modèle employé permet de reproduire le comportement de l’argile stabilisée à la chaux-ciment de manière très satisfaisante. Les particularités du comportement du matériau, telles que l’écrouissage et l’adoucissement, sont bien représentées. Les résultats du problème de valeurs aux limites ont été comparés aux mesures sur le terrain et il semble que ce modèle constitutif, employé dans une représentation tridimensionnelle par éléments finis du problème, soit capable de donner des résultats réalistes.