Supercomputer Simulation of Multiscale Dynamic Behaviour in Multiphase Deformable Porous Media. This project will establish and consolidate links between leading groups in China and Australia to develop a new and unique multiscale computational model and algorithm for simulating multiphase nonlinear behaviours of the porous media under dynamic loading conditions, and improve technology transfer between the two groups by the mobility of the ARC International Fellow. This will aid Australian geosc ....Supercomputer Simulation of Multiscale Dynamic Behaviour in Multiphase Deformable Porous Media. This project will establish and consolidate links between leading groups in China and Australia to develop a new and unique multiscale computational model and algorithm for simulating multiphase nonlinear behaviours of the porous media under dynamic loading conditions, and improve technology transfer between the two groups by the mobility of the ARC International Fellow. This will aid Australian geoscience and mining industry, such as in HFR geothermal/UCG energy facility design, construction, risk assessment and production and could help Australia shift away from greenhouse gases and become a world leader in the emerging worldwide HFR geothermal/UCG industry.Read moreRead less
Shear heating in granular materials: micromechanics of thermal conduction and production. Oil, gas and geothermal exploration are amongst the major energy industries in Australia and must be optimised to enable efficient production. These processes are dominated by the transfer of heat through granular soil media. Past research was based on continuum heat-flow solutions, but these problems are governed by distinct networks of particle-particle contacts and interparticle pore-fluids. Heat-flow so ....Shear heating in granular materials: micromechanics of thermal conduction and production. Oil, gas and geothermal exploration are amongst the major energy industries in Australia and must be optimised to enable efficient production. These processes are dominated by the transfer of heat through granular soil media. Past research was based on continuum heat-flow solutions, but these problems are governed by distinct networks of particle-particle contacts and interparticle pore-fluids. Heat-flow solutions depend on effective terms of thermal conduction, production and convection, but these change with loading. A systematic study must therefore be accomplished to formulate the micromechanics of the effective thermal properties, such that continuum solutions are refined to optimise energy exploration.Read moreRead less
Determination of unsaturated soil properties using cone penetrometer data. Unsaturated soils account for almost 40 percent of earth's land surface. Over 70 percent of Australia's land surface consists of unsaturated soils. The research proposed aims at providing a methodology for a realistic characterisation of unsaturated soils in the field. The developments in this research will be immediately applicable to many engineering problems of national interest including dams, embankments, foundatio ....Determination of unsaturated soil properties using cone penetrometer data. Unsaturated soils account for almost 40 percent of earth's land surface. Over 70 percent of Australia's land surface consists of unsaturated soils. The research proposed aims at providing a methodology for a realistic characterisation of unsaturated soils in the field. The developments in this research will be immediately applicable to many engineering problems of national interest including dams, embankments, foundations, highways and airfields. The work will also benefit Australia and the Australian research community through the development of a new expertise within Australia, which is likely to receive wide spread attention in both scientific and engineering communities.
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CO2 sequestration in deformable, chemically interactive, double porosity media. Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) level is emerging as one of the most serious issues affecting humanity. Models, theories and relationships derived from this research will have a direct and immediate impact on the design, construction, maintenance, management and risk assessment of sequestration systems in Australia and overseas, and will assist Australia and Australian community to meet its target reducti ....CO2 sequestration in deformable, chemically interactive, double porosity media. Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) level is emerging as one of the most serious issues affecting humanity. Models, theories and relationships derived from this research will have a direct and immediate impact on the design, construction, maintenance, management and risk assessment of sequestration systems in Australia and overseas, and will assist Australia and Australian community to meet its target reductions in CO2 emission. The work will also benefit Australia and the Australian research community through the development of a new expertise in Australia, which will have a significant potential for export to other countries.Read moreRead less
Plate kinematics to plate dynamics: understanding plate boundary processes at the global scale. This proposal aims to create geodynamic models which can be used a basis for a new, smart resource exploration and extraction industry which uses simulation to help characterize regions where traditional geophysical imaging alone is not able to penetrate. It provides essential scientific underpinnings for
The Australian Computational Earth System Simulator Major National Research Facility (ACcESS).
Thick-skin continental deformation and the rheology of faulted continental lithosphere. We plan to study the way in which major, long-lived faults influence the large-scale deformation of continental lithosphere in response to plate and mantle derived stresses. We will develop realistic computer models of networks of faults embedded in the crust to examine the way large faults (e.g. the San Andreas fault in California) interact with the deep crust and shallow mantle and the way they interact w ....Thick-skin continental deformation and the rheology of faulted continental lithosphere. We plan to study the way in which major, long-lived faults influence the large-scale deformation of continental lithosphere in response to plate and mantle derived stresses. We will develop realistic computer models of networks of faults embedded in the crust to examine the way large faults (e.g. the San Andreas fault in California) interact with the deep crust and shallow mantle and the way they interact with each other. No one previous model has been able to incorporate all the important dynamics. The work will be used by structural geologists, planetary scientists and be a valuable tool in mineral exploration.Read moreRead less
A fully coupled elasto-plastic model for dynamic analysis of unsaturated soils. This research is concerned with an important and, as yet, unresearched class of problems in geomechanics dealing with dynamic analysis of unsaturated soils. The work is of significance as it will contribute to the progress of soil mechanics as a science, advancing it from the study of unsaturated soils to that of real soils, which are invariably unsaturated. The project should lead to cost savings in many geotechnica ....A fully coupled elasto-plastic model for dynamic analysis of unsaturated soils. This research is concerned with an important and, as yet, unresearched class of problems in geomechanics dealing with dynamic analysis of unsaturated soils. The work is of significance as it will contribute to the progress of soil mechanics as a science, advancing it from the study of unsaturated soils to that of real soils, which are invariably unsaturated. The project should lead to cost savings in many geotechnical engineering practices as it will provide a better understanding of the response of unsaturated soils to dynamic loading and provide a greater confidence in the prediction of the preformance of earth-structures.Read moreRead less
Investigating mineral alteration and infilling of discontinuities in naturally deformed rocks as a guide to rock mass rheology. Structural analysis of naturally deformed rock will be used to investigate the origin, physical characteristics and frictional behaviour of naturally formed discontinuity surfaces. Discontinuities in naturally deformed rock masses are typically altered and infilled with complex combinations of mineral matter and are a major control on the rheology, including strength a ....Investigating mineral alteration and infilling of discontinuities in naturally deformed rocks as a guide to rock mass rheology. Structural analysis of naturally deformed rock will be used to investigate the origin, physical characteristics and frictional behaviour of naturally formed discontinuity surfaces. Discontinuities in naturally deformed rock masses are typically altered and infilled with complex combinations of mineral matter and are a major control on the rheology, including strength and stability, of rock masses in engineering excavations. By combining structural geology techniques and laboratory experiments, and with reference to existing data on field-scale rock mass deformation derived from engineering rock mechanics investigations, a methodology for predicting rock mass rheology from fundamental geological observations will be devised and tested.Read moreRead less
Experimental Investigation and Constitutive Modelling of Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Coupling Effects in Unsaturated Porous Media. The research proposed in this project will benefit the Australian community through provision of a methodology for a more realistic and fully coupled modelling of flow and deformation in unsaturated porous media subject to thermal loading. The developments proposed in this research will be immediately applicable to many engineering problems of national interest, includin ....Experimental Investigation and Constitutive Modelling of Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Coupling Effects in Unsaturated Porous Media. The research proposed in this project will benefit the Australian community through provision of a methodology for a more realistic and fully coupled modelling of flow and deformation in unsaturated porous media subject to thermal loading. The developments proposed in this research will be immediately applicable to many engineering problems of national interest, including storage of nuclear wastes, removal of contaminants using air sparging, steam drive/steam flooding, and in situ combustion. The work will also benefit Australia and the Australian research community through the development of a new expertise within Australia, which will have a high potential for export to other countries.
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