LIQUEFACTION STUDY USING THREE

DIMENTIOANAL DISTINCT ELEMENT METHOD

3

EARTHQUAKE AND LIQUEFACTION INDUCED DAMAGES

Liquefaction is one of the the most important, complex and controversial topic in geo-technical
earthquake engineering. Built environment is suffered severe damage due to liquefaction of soil.
Adverse effects of liquefaction include flow failures, lateral spreads, ground oscillation, loss of bearing
strength and settlement.
Mechanism of liquefaction
Liquefaction is a process by which sediment below water
table temporarily loses its strength and behaves as a
viscous liquid rather than a solid.

Seismic wave passing through saturated granular layers, distort the granular structure, and
cause loosely packed groups of particles to collapse. These collapses increase the pore water
pressure between the grains if drainage cannot occurs. If this pore water pressure rises to the
level of weight of overlaying soil, liquefaction will occur.
Background
2D 3D
Without consideration Constant volume
of pore water pressure analysis (sawada et al.)
Closed pore analysis Approximated element
Present study
consideration of pore volume analysis
water pressure -Complicated algorithm -Sudden change in the
considering direct
effect of pore water effect of pore water
(Tarumi & Hakune) (Nakase et al.)

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Numerical modeling
i Fn v
Liquefiable layer
= d
`
h

n
Normal contact
Ground behavior
Saturated soil
under undrained
j Element contact and cyclic loading
condition
+ + + + + + + + + + + + +
+ +
+ + + + + +
3 1 +
+ 3 1+ +
+ + + + + + + + +
4 i +
+ + 4 i +
+ 2 + + + + + + + + + 2+ + + +
i Ft

Cyclic
boundaries
s

j
Tangential contact Numerical specimen Hollow cylindrical torsion test
Modeling of specimen with
Modeling of element contact boundary condition Meguro Lab., IIS
 LIQUEFACTION STUDY USING THREE
DIMENTIOANAL DISTINCT ELEMENT METHOD
3

Given domain is divided into a number of 800

Excessive PWP(N/m^2)
cells and element volume, pore volume
600 4,4,2
4,4,3
400

change and pore water pressure are

4,4,4
200 4,4,5

calculated within the cell as a unit volume.

0 4,4,6
4,4,7
-200 0 5 10 15
4,4,8
-400 4,4,9
-600 4,4,10

Element volume (VE) -800

Maximum Time(sec)
diameter
Change of excessive pore
pore volume (VP = VT-VE)
pressure during packing

Excessive PWP Difference (PWPD) Z

250

Z = (VPO-VP)/VPO * EW 200

Void ratio(%)
4,4,2
4,4,3
150 4,4,4
12 Z

4,4,5
11
10
Excessive pore water pressure(PWPt) 100
4,4,6
4,4,7
50
=PWPt-1 + PWPD
9
8
0
7 X X 0 5 10 15
6 Y Y

Amount of Water Flow

X Time(sec)
5
7
4
3 4
5
6

Element location before Change of void ratio

2
1 1
2
3

Balance Pore volume (VPO) and after packing during packing

7 6 5 4 3 2
Y

Treatment of water pressure Preparation of numerical specimen

1.0 6
Pore pressure ratio

Z Loading plate

Shear stress(kN/m2)
4
2
0.5
0
-10 -5 0 5 10
-2

0.0 -4
0 5 10 15 20 -6
X Time(Sec) Shear strain(%)
Specimen set-up Pore pressure history Shear behavior
0.08 6
Shear stress(kN/m2)

0.06
displacement(m)

4
0.04
0.02 2
Shear

0.00 0
-0.02 0 5 10 15 20
-2 0 5 10 15 20
-0.04
-0.06 -4
-0.08 -6
Time(sec) Effective normal stress(kN/m^2)
Displacement input Shear effective normal stress curve Experimental result

Experimental and simulation results

2000
Excessive PWP(N/m^2)

Dissipation
Dissipation of excessive PWP PWP
of excessive 4,4,2
through a weak zonezone 1500
through a weak 4,4,3
1000 4,4,4
4,4,5
Non-liquefied layer 500 4,4,6
4,4,7
0
Liquefied layer, high pressure Z
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
-500
12
Time(Sec)
Input 11
water 10 350
Y 9 300 4,4,2
Void ratio(%)

4,4,3
250 4,4,7 4,4,6
8
200
7 7
150 4,4,5
6 6
100 4,4,4
5 5 50
4 4 0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 t = 1 sec t = 3 sec t = 5 sec
3 3
Time(sec)
2 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Y
Excessive PWP and Location of particles at different time
X
void ratio in column 4,4

Sand Boiling Simulation Meguro Lab., IIS