https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202124911012
Coupled DEM-FDM simulation of cone penetration tests in coarse grained soils
1
Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW), Wedeler Landstrasse 157, 22559 Hamburg, Germany
2
Center for Geotechnics, Technical University of Munich, Franz-Langinger-Str. 10, 81245 Munich, Germany
* Corresponding author: mussie.kidane@baw.de
Published online: 7 June 2021
The numerical modelling of geotechnical problems often poses major challenges when large displacements and strain localization are involved. Conventional continuum mechanical approaches like the finite element method (FEM) or the finite difference method (FDM) suffer from mesh distortion and numerical inaccuracy when large deformations are involved. In addition, they require the use of appropriate constitutive models to simulate the soil behaviour. The distinct element method is a promising alternative for large deformation analyses. It does not have the limitations resulting from the numerical discretization of the continuumand not need a constitutive model since the macroscopic response results from the individual particle interaction. However, the maximum number of particles and therefore the domain of the simulation is nowadays limited by the available computational capacity. To overcome this limitation, a coupled DEM-FDM approach is proposed used to optimize the number of particles for a combined numerical domain consisting of areas of large and small displacements. The performance of the coupled DEM-FDM approach is investigated by simulating cone penetration tests in coarse grained soils.
A video is available at https://doi.org/10.48448/pkmf-1y98
© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2021
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
