Coupled and multiphysics phenomena

The contributions assembled in the present volume proceed from the lectures of the 2015 ALERT Geomaterials Doctoral School devoted to Coupled and Multiphysics Phenomena. The school has been organized and coordinated by Bernhard Schrefler (Università degli Studi di Padova), Lorenzo Sanavia (Università degli Studi di Padova) and Frédéric Collin (Université de Liege). When dealing with the behaviour of multiphase porous systems, e.g. geomaterials, instances of complexity and interaction are numerous, mainly because of the coexistence of several constituents and phases, their physical and mechanical interactions, their reactivity and their often non-linear behaviour. The study of these coupled processes deals with a large number of applications, e.g. in geomechanics: underground structures (storage, tunnelling), surface structures (earth and concrete dams, embankments) as well as the exploitation of geo-resources (petroleum and gas extraction, mines and quarries). This volume contains nine chapters in which emphasis is given to the presentation of the fundamental and new concepts that help understanding coupled and multiphysics phenomena in porous systems. The contributions cover experimental, theoretical, as well as numerical aspects. The school is divided into three main parts: the description of the couplings in multiphysics phenomena, including the experimental developments; the mathematical modelling of all these coupled processes, with an introduction to the constitutive modelling taking into account the dilatancy, which characterizes the mechanical behaviour of geomaterials; the numerical implementation of the mathematical models, comprising constitutive equations as well as balance equations and finally numerical modelling through advanced applications.