1

Antonio Gens
UPC Barcelona
Technical University of Catalonia, Department
Geotechnical Engineering and Geosciences
Barcelona, Spain
Antonio Gens obtained his Civil Engineering

degree in 1972 at the Technical University of
Madrid and a M.Sc. degree in Soil Mechanics at
Imperial College, London, in 1973. After some
years working in industry, he returned to
Imperial College where he was awarded a Ph.D.
in 1982. His supervisors were Professors A.W.
Bishop and P.R. Vaughan. Since 1983 he has
been a member of the Department of
Geotechnical Engineering and Geosciences of
the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC) in
Barcelona (Spain) where he was appointed full
Professor in 1987. He has been Head of the
Department of Geotechnical Engineering and
Geosciences, Vice-president of the Council of
Departments of the Universityand member of
the Governing Council of the University.
Antonio Gens has been involved in geotechnical
research, consulting and teaching for over 35
years. His research interests have notably
included unsaturated soils and the development
of coupled multi-physics analysis. He has also
made significant contributions in the areas of
laboratory testing, field measurements and
backanalysis, constitutive and numerical
modelling,in situ characterization of soils, soil
freezing and ground improvement, slope
stability, tailing dams, tunnelling and nuclear
waste disposal. He has authored or co-authored
more than 300 papers published in refereed
Journals and International Conferences, 9 book
Chapters and has co-edited 9 books and
Special Journal issues.He has delivered over 50
Keynote Lectures, General Reports and
Specially Invited Lectures. He has been
academic visitor at MIT (USA), University of
Newcastle (Australia) and Imperial College
(UK). He has also lectured widely to Academic
and Professional Organizations in all five
of
Antonio Gens je diplomiral na Gradbeni fakulteti

Tehnike univerze v Madridu leta 1972. Naziv
magistra znanosti iz mehanike tal je pridobil na
kolidu Imperial v Londonu leta 1973. Po nekaj
letih dela v inenirski praksi se je vrnil na kolid
Imperial, kje je 1982 konal doktorski tudij.
Njegova mentorja sta bila profesorja A. W.
Bishop in P. R. Vaughan. Od leta 1983 je lan
Oddelka za geotehnino inenirstvo in
geoznanosti na Tehniki univerzi Katalonije
(UPC) v Barceloni v paniji, kjer je bil 1987
izvoljen za rednega profesorja. Bil je vodja
oddelka za geotehnino inenirstvo in
geoznanosti, podpredsednik skupine oddelkov
in lan nadzornega sveta Univerze.
Antonio Gens je e 35 let aktiven v
geotehninem raziskovanju, svetovanju in
pouevanju. Njegov raziskovalni interes je bil
usmerjen predvsem v nezasiena tla in razvoj
povezanih analiz veih fizinih pojavov. Pripravil
je pomembne prispevke o laboratorijskem
testiranju, terenskih meritvah in povratnih
analizah ter o konstitutivnem in numerinem
modeliranju,
in-situ
karakterizaciji
tal,
zmrzovanju tal, izboljanju tal, stabilnosti brein,
zemeljskih pregradah, gradnji predorov in
shranjevanju jedrskih odpadkov. Kot avtor ali
soavtor je nastopil v ve kot 300 lankih v
geotehninih asopisih in prispevkih na
mednarodnih konferencah ter v devetih knjigah.
Je sourednik devetih knjig in posebnih izdaj
asopisov. Pripravil je ve kot 50 uvodnih
predavanj, generalnih poroil in posebnih
vabljenih predavanj. Na specializaciji je bil na
MIT v ZDA, na Univerzi v Newcastlu v Avstraliji
in na kolidu Imperial v Veliki Britaniji. Predaval
je v tevilnih akademskih in strokovnih
organizacijah na vseh celinah.
Kot konzultant je doma in v tujini sodeloval pri
continents.
He has consulted widely at home and abroad in
a wide variety of geotechnical projects involving
tunnelling, deep excavations, harbour quays,
breakwaters, embankment and concrete dams,
tailing
dams,
power
stations,
airports,
radioactive waste repositories, large-scale
scientific facilities, deep and shallow foundations
(onshore and offshore), ground improvement,
slope stability, underpinning of structures and
site investigations.He was a member of the
Experts Committee for the investigation of the
failure of Nicoll Highway (Singapore), he served
as a court-appointed expert for the failure of the
Aznalcllar tailings dam and he has been a
member of the UNESCO-sponsored Experts
Committee to monitor the construction of a
tunnel in the vicinity of the SagradaFamilia
church and other UNESCO-listed buildings in
Barcelona
Professor Gens contributions in the field of soil
mechanics and geotechnical engineering have
been recognized in a variety of ways. The
International Association for Computer Methods
and Advances in Geomechanics (IACMAG)
awarded him the Chandra Desai Medal in 2001
and the Outstanding Contributions Awardin
2011. He has also been awarded the Case
History Award by the American Rock Mechanics
Association in 2006 and the R.M. Quigley Award
(first prize) by the Canadian Geotechnical
Society in 2009. In addition, he has been
presented, by the UKs Institution of Civil
Engineers, the Telford Medal twice, in 1994 and
in 2007, and the George Stephenson Medal
also twice in 2008 and 2012. In 2005 he was
made a member of the Real Academia de
Doctores (Royal Academy of Doctors in Spain)
and in 2007 he was presented the Ildefonso
Cerd Medal, the highest distinction of the
Colegio de Ingenieros de Caminos (Institution of
Civil Engineers) in Catalonia. In 1998 he
delivered the British Geotechnical Society
th
Touring Lecture, in 2000 the 8
Prague
Geotechnical Lecture, in 2008 the Golders
Associates Distinguished Lecture in Canada
and in 2013 the Coulomb lecture in Paris. In
2007 he presented the 47th Rankine Lecture in
London with the title: Soil-environment
interactions in Geotechnical Engineering.In
2011, he was elected a Fellow of the UKs Royal
Academy of Engineering.
His
involvement
with
the
geotechnical
mnoici razlinih geotehninih projektov,

vkljuno z gradnjo predorov, globokimi izkopi,
pristanii, vodnimi zajetji,
nasutimi in
betonskimi pregradami, pogonskimi centralami,
letalii, jalovii in deponijami radioaktivnih
odpadkov, znanstveno infrastrukturo vejega
obsega, globokim in plitvim temeljenjem (na
obali, morju ali oceanu), izboljanjem zemljine,
stabilnostjo brein, sanacijo temeljenja in
geoloko-geomehanskimi raziskavami. Bil je
lan strokovne skupine za raziskovanje ruenja
avtoceste Nicoll v Singapurju, delal je tudi kot
ekspertni izvedenec za ruitev jeza jalovia
Aznalcllar. Kot lan ekspertne skupine, ki jo je
sponzoriral UNESCO, je spremljal gradnjo
tunela v bliini cerkve Sagrada Familia in drugih
UNESCOVIH zaitenih stavb in objektov v
Barceloni.
Prispevki profesorja Gensa na podroju razvoja
mehanike tal in geotehninega inenirstva so
dobili ve priznanj. Mednarodna zveza za
raunalnike metode in napredke v geomehaniki
mu je podelila medaljo Chandra Desai leta 2001
in nagrado za izjemne zasluge leta 2011.
Amerika zveza za mehaniko kamnin (American
Rock Mechanics Association) ga je nagradila za
primer dobre geotehnine prakse leta 2006,
Kanadsko geotehniko drutvo (Canadian
Geotechnical Society) pa mu je podelilo prvo
nagrado R. M. Quigley leta 2009. V letih 1994 in
2007 je dobil Telfordovi medalji od Zbornice
gradbenih inenirjev (Institution of Civil
Engineers) iz Velike Britanije, v letih 2008 in
2012 pa medalji Georga Stephensona. Leta
2005 je postal lan Kraljevske doktorske
akademije (Real Academia de Doctores) v
paniji, kjer je leta 2007 dobil e medaljo
Ildefonso Cerd, ki je najvija nagrada, ki je
dodeli Inenirska Zbornica Katalonije (Colegio
de Ingenieros de Caminos). Pripravil
je
naslednja vabljena predavanja: leta 1998
"British Geotechnical Society Touring Lecture",
leta 2000 "8th Prague Geotechnical Lecture",
leta
2008
"The
Golders
Associates
Distinguished Lecture" v Kanadi in leta 2013
"Coulomb lecture" v Parizu. Leta 2007 je
predstavil 47. Rankinovo predavanje v Londonu
z naslovom: Interakcija tal in okolja v
geotehninem inenirstvu. Leta 2011 je bil
izbran za lana Kraljevske inenirske akademije
v Veliki Britaniji (UKs Royal Academy of
Engineering).
Sodelovanje prof. Gensa
profesionalnih
zdruenjih
v geotehninih
je
posebnega
community has been particularly close. He is or

has been a member of 7 ISSMGEs Technical
Committees and he is currently a core member
of Technical Committees TC-106 (Unsaturated
soils) and TC-215 (Environmental Geotechnics).
He has recently been elected Vice-President for
Europe of the ISSMGE for the period 20132017.
pomena. Bil je lan sedmih razlinih tehninih

komitejev Mednarodnega drutva za mehaniko
tal in geotehnino inenirstvo (ISSMGE) in je
trenutno oji lan Tehninega komiteja TC-106
(Nezasiena tla) in TC-215 (Okoljevarstvena
geotehnika). Pred kratkim je bil izbran za
podpredsednika Mednarodnega drutva za
mehaniko tal in geotehnino inenirstvo za
Evropo (ISSMGE) za obdobje 2013-2017.
Antonio Gens
The development of unsaturated soil mechanics
Antonio GENS
Department of Geotechnical Engineering and Geosciences, Technical University of Catalonia,
Barcelona, Spain
e-naslov: antonio.gens@upc.edu
THE DEVELOPMENT OF UNSATURATED SOIL MECHANICS

ABSTRACT: The paper presents a summary overview of some significant milestones in the
development of Unsaturated Soil Mechanics. The concepts of potential and suction are first reviewed with
a special focus on matrix suction, the most important component concerning mechanical behaviour of
soils. The alternatives for selecting the relevant constitutive variables are then discussed in the context of
the work rate equation. The formulation of elastoplastic models for an unsaturated soil is then addressed
by describing three different models corresponding to different periods of development and to increasing
levels of complexity. Finally, the relevance of those developments is illustrated by the reference to the two
examples of the application involving the foundation collapse due to the wetting and the non-isothermal
behaviour of a compacted clay barrier for nuclear waste isolation.
POVZETEK: V lanku je predstavljen kratek pregled nekaterih pomembnih mejnikov v razvoju mehanike
nezasienih tal. Najprej je predstavljen pregled konceptov potenciala in sukcije, s posebnim poudarkom
na matrini sukciji, ki je najpomembneja komponenta mehanskega obnaanja tal. Sledi predstavitev
monosti izbire relevantnih konstitutivnih spremenljivk v kontekstu enabe prirasta dela. Nato so
prikazane formulacije elastoplastinih modelov za nezasiene zemljine. Opisani so trije razlini modeli
glede na razlina obdobja razvoja in naraanje kompleksnosti. Na koncu je ponazorjena pomembnost
razvoja predstavljenih modelov z njihovo uporabo na dveh praktinih primerih. Prvi zadeva ruenje
temelja zaradi vlaenja temeljnih tal in drugi neizotermalno obnaanje kompaktirane glinene bariere za
izolacijo radioaktivnih odpadkov.
Antonio Gens
INTRODUCTION
Unsaturated Soil Mechanics has now a rather long but uneven development history. An important step
was taken when the key role of suction on the mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soils was explicitly
recognized (e.g. Croney, 1952). Subsequently, there was widespread experimental work (e.g. Bishop et
al., 1960; Bishop and Blight, 1963). Laboratory results were generally interpreted in terms of a proposed
effective stresses for unsaturated soils (Bishop, 1959). However, it was soon noted that such an effective
stress was unable to characterize the full range of unsaturated soil behaviour (Jennings and Burland,
1962). Perhaps as a consequence of this there was a relative pause in the basic study of the mechanical
behaviour of this type of soils. During that period, unsaturated soils often were lumped together with other
materials in soil categories such as difficult soils, regional soils or special soils or other similar
groupings.
To change this situation, it was necessary to notice that any soil could be unsaturated and, therefore,
there could be no reason why a fundamental approach, already successful in the case of saturated soils,
could not be applied also to this type of materials. As a matter of fact, there is nothing special in an
unsaturated soil apart from the fact that some part of the pore space is occupied by air (or other nonwetting fluids). Instead of considering unsaturated soils as a separate class of materials, there should be
an unbroken continuity with the well-established understanding of saturated soil behaviour. Important
steps in this direction were given by the separate consideration of two stress variables in the definition of
state surfaces (Matyas and Radhakrisna, 1968), an idea already anticipated in Coleman (1962) and
Bishop and Blight (1963). The use of state surfaces and the theoretical and experimental justification of
using two independent stress variables were further reinforced by the work of Fredlund and Morgenstern
(1977) and Fredlund & Rahardjo (1993). Further evidence on relevant stress variables has been provided
by Tarantino et al. (2000).
Research on unsaturated soils has intensified in the last decades resulting in a large amount of
theoretical developments, laboratory investigations, methods of suction control and measurement, and, to
a lesser extent, field applications. A fundamental tool to organize the observations obtained from this
systematic research is the development of constitutive laws capable of reproducing, in a consistent
manner, the most important features of the mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soils. Overcoming the
limitations of the state surface approach, elastoplasticity has proved a very successful framework for
developing constitutive laws appropriate for unsaturated soils although other approaches such as
hypoplasticity have also been successfully attempted (Masin & Khalili, 2008). Those laws can be
considered a key component of general theoretical coupled formulations that include mechanical
deformation, gas flow, liquid flow and, often, thermal aspects (e.g. Olivella et al., 1994, Gawin et al., 1995,
Thomas and He, 1995, Khalili and Loret, 2001, Gens 2010a).
In this paper the concept and role of suction, a key variable in Unsaturated Soil Mechanics is discussed
followed by a summary review of the, on occasion, controversial issue of what are the relevant variables
for the constitutive description of the behaviour of unsaturated soils. To provide an overview of the pattern
of development of elastoplastic constitutive formulations, three different models are briefly presented
spanning from the early BBM model to some recent developments that include microstructural variables
and hydromechanical coupling. Finally two examples of application to engineering problems are
introduced, again covering a wide range of complexity of phenomena.
SUCTION
Water potential
The concept of suction is absolutely the key for the adequate understanding of the generalized behaviour
of soils. A good understanding of unsaturated soil behaviour requires therefore a good physical grounding
for the new variable. It is probably significant that the way in which suction should be viewed and the
manner in which it is introduced in the stress variables used in constitutive models has received
increasing attention in recent times (Li 2003, Lu 2008, Baker and Frydman 2009, Scholts et al. 2009,
Gens 2010a, 2010b).
Antonio Gens
Suction is closely related to water potential that can be defined as the amount of work that must be done
per unit mass of pure water in order to transport reversibly and isothermally an infinitesimal quantity of
water from a reservoir of pure water at a specified elevation and gas pressure to the soil point under
2 -2
consideration (units: L T ). Although only total water potential matters concerning water flow, it has
proved useful, especially when considering mechanical behaviour, to distinguish between different
components of potential (e.g. Aitchison et al., 1965):
g p m o
(1)
where g is the gravitational potential, p is the gas pressure potential, m is the matric potential and o
is the osmotic potential. Only the internal components of the potential, matric and osmotic, have
noticeable effects on unsaturated soil mechanical behaviour. It should be noted that the existence of
osmotic potential requires the presence of a semi-permeable membrane, a string limitation in field
situations. It should be noted that matric potential is equivalent to Gibbs (free) energy (under constant
pressure and temperature) and, using an adequate definition, it is also equivalent to the chemical
potential of water.
Expressing potential per unit volume (and changing the sign), matric, s, and osmotic, so, suctions are
-1 -2
obtained, they have units of pressure (ML T ). Total suction is the sum of the two components: st =s +
so; total suction is related to relative humidity through Kelvins law:
0
s M
0
RH pv / pv gw / gw exp t w
RT w
(2)
where pv is the partial vapour pressure, (pv) is the equilibrium vapour pressure at the same temperature
w
w 0
and zero suction, g is the vapour concentration, (g ) is the reference vapour concentration at the
same temperature, Mw is the molecular mass of water (18.016 kg/kmol), R is the universal gas constant
(8.314 J/mol K), and T the absolute temperature in degrees Kelvin. It should be noted that relative
humidity is in fact equivalent to the definition of water activity. The rest of this section is focused on matric
suction, the most important suction component concerning the mechanical behaviours of soil. Osmotic
suction is only relevant in the case of some very active clays, in which a degree of semi-permeable
membrane is naturally established.
Matric suction
Matric suction is often linked to capillary phenomena. It is well known that, in some saturation ranges,
water forms menisci with curved surfaces in the contact zone between particles, akin to those that appear
during water ascension inside capillary tubes. Surface tension ensures that the liquid pressure inside the
meniscus is lower than the gas pressure outside. Matric suction, s, is then defined as:
s pa pw
(3)
where pa is the air pressure and pw is the water pressure. Strictly speaking, matric suction should be
defined in terms of gas and liquid pressure but, in this paper, gas and liquid are equated to air and water,
respectively.
The meniscus suction gives rise to the interparticle forces that have a stabilising effect on soil structure.
The force generated by a liquid meniscus between two spheres of equal radii in contact was calculated by
Fisher (1926) and it is plotted in Figure 1 as a function of meniscus angle. The calculation considers the
effect of the negative pressure over the area of the meniscus and the effect of the surface tension in the
gas/liquid interface. The computed force depends on the value of the surface tension and on the diameter
of the spheres.
Antonio Gens
Figure 1. Variation of interparticle force with meniscus wetting angle Fisher (1926). s is the surface
tension and R the radii of the spheres.
The actual fabric of a soil, however, is very different from a bundle of capillary tubes, especially if finegrained soils are considered. The capillary model should thus be used prudently and not beyond the
range of plausibility. Accordingly, it is necessary to extend the concept of matric suction to incorporate a
series of additional phenomena other than capillary forces (Nitao and Bear, 1996). In this context, Philip
(1977) developed a unitary approach that included, in addition to capillary condensation, a term
representing adsorption phenomena in porous media. The adsorptive component is a product of a
number of both long term and short term forces (e.g. electrostatic Coulomb forces, van der Waals forces,
hydration forces, hydrogen bonding, charged surface-dipole attraction) that control the molecular
interactions of water near a solid surface (Derjaguin et al., 1987). The augmented potential now reads:
m C (c ) A(h)
(4)
where C is the capillary component of the matric potential and A the adsorptive one; c is the mean
curvature of the interface and h is the thickness of the film of adsorbed water. The capillary component
can be derived from Laplaces equation and, for the adsorptive component Phillip (1977) proposed an
empirical expression, assuming that it depended on the film thickness only,
C ( )
2s c
RT
; A(h)
w
h
(5)
in which s is the surface tension, w is the density of the water, is a positive constant, R is the gas
constant and T is the absolute temperature in K. This work has been updated and extended to a more
general pore model (Figure 2) in Tuller et al. (1999).
Antonio Gens
Figure 2. A sketch illustrating liquid-gas interfacial configurations during transition from adsorption (a,b) to
capillary dominated imbibition (c,d) in an idealized pore geometry (modified from Tuller et al., 1999).
It is likely that the capillary component and adsorptive component may have different effects on
mechanical behaviour. It is difficult, however, to separate them in practice and the tendency is to lump the
two effects together into a single measure of matric suction that is generally expressed as [3]. Therefore,
negative pore pressures that sometimes may reach a very high magnitude should not be viewed as a
conventional pressure of bulk water but as the expression of the potential of the water attached to the
solid phase. At low degrees of saturation, this degree of attachment (potential) can be sometimes very
large and, consequently, equivalent pressure values of hundreds of MPa are sometimes quoted. This fact
should not cause undue difficulties if viewed in this context.
Indeed, the separation between adsorptive and capillary potential, though useful for conceptual
understanding, should not be unduly overstressed. It is likely that the transition between the two regimes
is gradual. After all, capillary phenomena arise from interaction between liquid, solid surface and interface
that are only noticeable in the proximity of solid surfaces. There is surface tension but not significant
capillary effects when water is inside a large vessel. So the development of increasing negative potentials
should be viewed as a continuous process largely without jumps with the possible exception of the
ordered layers of water that occur in the immediate vicinity of a clay particle surface.
STRESS VARIABLES
The stress variables required to describe the full mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soils and to
formulate the corresponding constitutive laws have been a matter of some controversy in the
development of Unsaturated Soil Mechanics. In principle, any relevant variable can be selected as
constitutive variable but, for engineering purposes, constitutive laws are usually (but not always) defined
in stress space, i.e. using scalar, vector or tensor variables that have units of stresses. However, as it will
be indicated later, it would possible to adopt other types of variables (e.g. degree of saturation, water
content) if they had a greater descriptive or predictive power.
In any case, there is general agreement that at least two constitutive variables are generally required to
represent adequately the full range of unsaturated soil behaviour, i.e. including strength and deformation.
As stated by Jommi (2000): in fact, no single stress variable has ever been found which, substituted for
effective stress, allows a description of all the aspects of the mechanical behaviour of a given soil in the
unsaturated range. It is convenient to refer to them as the first and second constitutive variables (FCV
and SCV). Intentionally, they are not called constitutive stress variables to remain open to the possibility
that variable types other than stresses are adopted. Usually, the FCV tries to account for the overall
stress state of the soil whereas the SCV tends to address mainly the effects of suction changes. Thus, if
the constitutive variables chosen were net stresses and suction (as in the Barcelona Basic Model, BBM)),
the FCV (net stress) responds to loading changes whereas the SCV (suction) deals with environmental
actions related to suction variations. The same comment can be made if, as in the model of Gallipoli et al.
(2003) described below, average skeleton stress and a bonding parameter are used. In any case, in the
Antonio Gens
majority of constitutive models developed, those two constitutive variables normally adopt the following
general form:
FCV:
ij pa ij 1 s, Sr ij ; SCV: 2 s, Sr
(6)
where is total stress, Sr is the degree of saturation and ij is Kroneckers delta.

The FCV is expressed as a modified stress tensor; in contrast, for the SCV, aiming to represent the
additional effects of suction, a scalar is usually adopted. However, one of the main effects of suction is
the generation of stabilising interparticle forces. It would be reasonable to expect, as pointed out by Li
(2003) and Scholts et al. (2009), that the SCV should incorporate some kind of fabric measure of the
soil; the variable would then no longer be a scalar, more likely a tensor. Indeed, if suction effects have a
tensorial form, it is questionable that an averaged pressure in the fluid phase is an adequate
representation of the role of suction even when defining the FCV (Scholts et al., 2009). In any case, the
use of a tensorial form for the effects of suction is difficult to accomplish due to the complexity of
determining the soil fabric and its variation as soil deforms. Accordingly, scalar definitions of the SCV
have been dominant hitherto. It can be argued that suction has a different physical nature than stress
variables (Lu, 2008) and some objections have been put forward concerning the validity of combining
stresses and suction into a single expression (Baker and Frydman, 2009). However, there does not seem
to be any a priori reason against a constitutive variable combining different types of variables if an
adequate description of soil behaviour is thereby achieved.
A constitutive variable that has been frequently used and for which, sometimes, a special status is
claimed is written as:
ij ij pa ij Sr ( pa pw )ij
(7)
As stated before, this variable has been called Bishops stress (Bolzon et al., 1996, Tamagnini, 2004)
and, also, average skeleton stress (Jommi, 2000, Gallipoli et al., 2003, Wheeler et al., 2003). Other terms
that have also been used are Bishops effective stress, average stress (Sheng et al., 2004) and
generalized effective stress (Laloui and Nuth, 2009). It should be noted, however, that Bishop (1959)
used a scaling factor (Sl) and not Sl in his expression for effective stress. In the context of unsaturated
soils, equation (7) was probably first used by Schrefler (1984).
An important contribution to this issue was made by Houlsby (1997) who derived, under reasonably
general conditions, the rate of work input per unit volume of unsaturated soil (W):
W pa n(1 Sr ) a / a ( pa pw ) n Sr ij Sr pw (1 Sw ) pa ij ij
(8)
where pa is the air density, n is porosity and ij are the strains. In this expression, the work performed by
the flow of fluids is not included and it is also assumed that, on average, the contractile skin move with
the soil skeleton, perhaps the most questionable assumption. If the air compressibility term is neglected,
the work rate input is:
W ( pa pw ) n Sw ij Sr pw (1 Sr ) pa ij ij
(9)
It is now possible to define sets of stress and strain variables that are conjugate to each other. An
immediate choice is:
ij Sr pw (1 Sr ) pa ij ij
n( pa pw )
Sr
10
(10)
Antonio Gens
where Bishops stress is conjugate to strains and a modified suction is conjugate to degree of saturation.
However, expression (10) can also be rearranged to give the following conjugates stresses and strains:
ij
ij pa ij
( pa pw ) w (nSr Sr v )
(11)
Now, net stress is conjugate to strains and suction is conjugate to the volumetric water content, w = nSr.
From this perspective, therefore, the work input expression does not provide a criterion to select a set of
constitutive variables in preference to the other. Indeed, it may be stated that, at the present state of
development, selection of constitutive variables should be a matter of convenience, depending on the
intended application.
It should be immediately added however, that the choice of constitutive variables has an influence on the
nature of the constitutive law developed. To examine this issue, it was proved to be convenient to classify
the constitutive laws according to the choice of the FCV (Gens, 1996, 2010a); a similar classification has
been explored in Nuth and Laloui (2008).
Class I models adopt a FCV with 1=0, i.e. net stresses are used. In general, for those models:
-
the stress paths of conventional tests and typical loading situations are easily represented, this
type of models are well suited to illustrate conceptual constitutive developments
the constitutive variable is independent of the material state
if suction is the SCV, the two constitutive variables are independent (except for the gas
pressure). However, the conjugate strain variables are not independent (equation (11)).
continuity of constitutive variables and behaviour is not ensured at the saturated/unsaturated
transition. Some procedures have been proposed to achieve continuity in numerical analysis
(Vaunat et al., 1997).
the hydraulic component of the model is independent of the mechanical one, specific mechanical
effects of degree of saturation are not included
an independent function is required to model the increase of shear strength with suction.
It should be pointed out that a recent constitutive model of this Class, the SFG model (Sheng et al.,
2008), is able to overcome several of the shortcomings listed above.
In class II models, 1(s) is a function of suction but does not include degree of saturation. In that case,
-
representation of stress paths of conventional tests and typical loading situations is not
straightforward
the constitutive variable is still independent of the material state if no additional parameters are
included
the two constitutive variables are linked
continuity of variables and behaviour is not automatically assured at the saturated/unsaturated
transition
the hydraulic component of the model is independent of the mechanical one, the specific
mechanical effects of degree of saturation are not included
the increase of strength with suction is a result of the constitutive variable definition
strength and elastic behaviour can be unified with an adequate selection of the FCV (Khalili et
al., 2004).
Finally, in class III models, 1(s, Sr) is a function of both suction and degree of saturation. Constitutive
models using Bishops stress as the FCV belong to this class of models.
-
representation of stress paths of conventional tests and typical loading situations is complex and
sometimes impossible if degree of saturation data is not available
the constitutive variable depends on degree of saturation and, therefore, on the material state
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the two constitutive variables are linked

continuity is automatically ensured at the saturated/unsaturated transition
the hydraulic component of the model is closely coupled to the mechanical component and the
specific mechanical effects of degree of saturation can be included. Hydraulic and hysteresis
effects can be incorporated in a natural way but the success of the mechanical model is
dependent on having an adequate hydraulic relationship. In particular, care should be taken that
the product Srs that enters the definition of Bishops stress should not take unrealistic large
values at low degrees of saturation (Loret and Khalili, 2002). In that range, suctions can have
extremely large magnitudes and the product sSl may reach absurdly high values that disrupt any
model prediction.
the increase of strength with suction is a result of the constitutive variable definition
strength and elastic behaviour can be unified with an adequate selection of the FCV.
A similar classification could be performed concerning the SCV but, in this case, the variation is
significantly less as most constitutive models use suction. Wheeler et al. (2003) adopted modified suction
defined as ns where n is porosity and s suction, consistent with equation (10). Some recent models have
directly selected degree of saturation, Sr, or effective degree of saturation, Se (Zhou et al., 2012a, 2012b,
Alonso et al. 2013). Effective degree of saturation is defined as (Romero & Vaunat 2000, Tarantino &
Tombolato 2005):
Sr Srres
Se 0
Sr Srres
0
where Sr is the degree of saturation at zero suction (generally taken as 1) and Sr

of saturation.
(12)
res
is the residual degree
ELASTOPLASTIC CONSTITUTIVE MODELS

Starting in the sixties, behaviour of unsaturated soils was frequently described by state or constitutive
surfaces that established relationships between two stress variables (generally net stress and suction)
and volume change. Sometimes, state surfaces for other variables such as degree of saturation were
also derived (Matyas and Radhakrishna, 1968, Aitchison and Martin, 1973, Fredlund and Morgenstern,
1976, Lloret and Alonso, 1985). State surfaces, however, were limited when trying to model the general
behaviour of unsaturated soils. Issues of irreversibility, yield and stress path dependency are not easily
accommodated in this type of framework. Also, state surfaces usually addressed partial aspects of
behaviour without establishing consistent links between different features of behaviour.
However, there were clear advantages in trying to develop constitutive models within the general
framework of elastoplasticity. One of the objectives of this development was to try to place Unsaturated
Soil Mechanics closer to the mainstream of Saturated Soil Mechanics that, for constitutive descriptions of
soil behaviour, was largely dominated by the concepts underlying Critical State Soil Mechanics and
elastoplasticity. The aim was to construct a complete and consistent framework capable of providing
predictions under all circumstances. The development of such a framework should offer some significant
benefits:
-
to provide a consistent framework for an integrated understanding of the various features of

unsaturated soil behaviour
to assist in the identification of basic parameters and reference states governing soil behaviour
to furnish bases for further development of more complex constitutive laws and to enable the
performance of numerical analysis for application to engineering problems
Thus, the formulation of consistent and complete constitutive models within the framework of
elastoplasticity constitutes one of the most significant developments in Unsaturated Soil Mechanics.
Those developments are so numerous (Gens, 2010a) that it is futile to attempt a useful review in a limited
space. Instead, in this section, three examples of constitutive laws are summarily described. They have
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been chosen to illustrate the development of increasingly complex models accounting for additional
variables and phenomena. They display, in a necessarily partial way, the range of options, variables and
generality available for modelling unsaturated soils.
The models presented are:
i) The Barcelona Basic Model (BBM). This is probably the earliest elastoplastic model for unsaturated
soils using net stresses and suction as constitutive variables. It is arguably the most widely used in
analysis. It represents a very basic model at the early stage of development of the subject but many of
the concepts underlying the model have been adopted by subsequent developments.
ii) The model of Gallipoli et al. (2003) that illustrates the increasing tendency to incorporate
microstructural considerations into the model. It uses Bishops stress and a microstructurally-informed
parameter as constitutive variables.
iii) The model of Zhou et al. (2012a, 2012b) that incorporates a key feature of unsaturated soil behaviour:
the coupling between mechanical and hydraulic behaviour. In addition to adopt a modified Bishops stress
as the FCV, it uses the effective degree of saturation (defined above) as SCV.
The Barcelona Basic Model (BBM)
The BBM was fully described in Alonso et al. (1990), and, in a more summary form, in Gens et al. (1989).
Indeed, the use of the concepts of the model to represent qualitatively unsaturated soil behaviour was
first introduced in Alonso et al. (1987) before the mathematical formulation was formally presented.
A starting point for the development of the model is depicted schematically in Figure 3a where the
idealized results of consolidation tests under constant suction are shown. It can be observed that the yield
point is located beyond the saturated consolidation line (corresponding to the line s=0) and reaches
further to the right as suction increases. The stabilising forces due to suction allow the material to sustain
a higher applied stress at a given void ratio. The higher the suction, the higher is the stress that can be
sustained before yield. The various yield points are plotted in isotropic p-s (mean net stress-suction)
space (Figure 3b). Joining them together, a yield curve, denoted as LC (Loading-Collapse), results. The
name refers to the fact that this yield curve controls irreversible behaviour due to either loading or to
collapse (actually compression) due to increasing soil saturation (Figure 4).
Yield curve
LC
S3
S2
S1
SUCTION, s
Yield
VOID RATIO, e
S=0
Elastic
domain
S3
S2
S1
S=0
MEAN NET STRESS, p
MEAN NET STRESS, p
Figure 3. a) Idealised scheme of consolidation lines at different suction values. b) Definition of the LC
(Loading-Collapse) yield curve in the isotropic plane).
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The displacement of the yield curve is associated with plastic volumetric deformations that are equal to
the plastic volumetric strains that would be obtained from a consolidation test on a saturated sample (s =
0) going from (po*)1 to (po*)2. Assuming a hardening law of the Cam-clay type, the plastic volumetric
p
strain, dv , can be expressed as:
d vp
(0) dp0
1 e p0
(13)
where is the slope of the saturated virgin consolidation line, is the slope of the unloading/reloading
line (assumed independent of suction), e is the void ratio and po* is the hardening parameter, the
intersection of the LC curve with the s=0 line in the isotropic plane.
SUCTION, s
Loading
Elastic
domain
S1
Yield curve Yield curve

LC1
LC2
o 1
L
C
Collapse
*
o 1
*
o 2
MEAN NET STRESS, p
Figure 4. Displacement of the LC yield surface on loading at constant suction (path L) and wetting at
constant applied stress (path C)
The extension of the model to include deviatoric stresses and strains is illustrated in Figure 5a. In the q-p
space (q is the triaxial deviatoric stress and p the mean stress), the curve indicated by the label s = 0
represents the yield surface for saturated conditions. To emphasize the compatibility with saturated
models, the ellipse of the Modified Cam-clay (MCC) model was chosen but other yield surface shapes
could have been equally used. As suction increases, the ellipse size also increases. On the right hand
side, po increases in accordance with the shape of the LC yield curve. On the left hand side, ps increases
linearly with suction. The implicit assumption here is that the friction angle (or slope of the critical state
line) is not affected by suction but the apparent cohesion increases proportionally to suction. The
formulation is completed with a flow rule that may be chosen to be associated or non-associated. The
model is summarised in Figure 5b that shows a three-dimensional view of the yield surface in p-q-s
space. It is a graphic way to illustrate the generalization of the saturated framework via the inclusion of an
additional variable, suction. The BBM model defined in this way collapses into the MCC model when
suction becomes zero and saturated conditions are reached.
With these simple (even simplistic) assumptions the model can describe a large number of typical
features of the mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soils in a natural unforced way (Alonso et al., 1987,
1990). Some examples are: the variation of wetting-induced swelling or collapse strains depending on the
magnitude of applied stresses, the reversal of volumetric strains observed sometimes during wettinginduced collapse, the increase of shear strength with suction, the stress path independency associated
with wetting paths and the opposite when the stress path involves drying or the apparent increase of
preconsolidation stress with suction. Simplicity also implies that only a limited number of additional
parameters are required.
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q
CSL (s)
CSL (s=0)
s
s=0
po*
ps
MEAN NET STRESS,
po
a)
b)
Figure 5. a) Yield surfaces in the q-p plane for saturated (s=0) and unsaturated conditions. b) Threedimensional view of the yield surface in (p, q, s) stress space.
Other models were quickly developed that, while keeping the same core of basic assumptions, sought to
improve some of the shortcomings of the original BBM. Thus Josa et al. (1992) used non linear
relationships for the variation of void ratio with lnp so that collapse strains did not increase indefinitely but
they went through a maximum before reducing to zero at high stresses. Wheeler and Sivakumar (1995)
used model functions more closely based on experimental results and Cui et al. (1995) adopted a
saturated yield function typical of anisotropically consolidated soils.
A microstructure-informed constitutive model
This model (Gallipoli et al. 2003) attempts to incorporate in a more direct manner the effect of suction on
behaviour using a very idealized picture of the microstructure of a granular soil. There are two ways in
which suction affects the behaviour of an unsaturated soil:
-
by changing the average skeleton stress through changes in the average fluid pressure acting in
the soil pores
by providing an additional bonding force at particle contacts, often ascribed to capillary
phenomena in the water menisci.
For a given suction, two regions can be envisaged in an unsaturated soil: the first one, corresponding to
the smaller pores, may be totally saturated, whereas the second one, corresponding to the larger pores,
contains gas and liquid in the form of interparticle menisci (Figure 6). The relative proportions of each
region vary as suction changes. An important insight (Karube and Kato, 1994, Wheeler and Karube,
1996, Wheeler et al., 2003) is to realize that a variation in suction affects the average skeleton stress due
to pore pressure changes in the saturated regions whereas the modifications of the capillary-induced
bonding occur in the menisci/gas region. The selection of constitutive variables for the model attempts to
introduce explicitly those physical insights in an approximate manner.
A first constitutive variable is Bishops stress (Equation (7)) that aims to represent the average skeleton
stress. The second constitutive variable must be related to the bonding effect of the capillary forces at
interparticle contacts. These interparticle forces provide a stabilising effect with respect to relative
movement and slippage between particles. Features of unsaturated soil behaviour must be the result of
the bonding and de-bonding phenomena associated with the formation and disappearance of water
menisci of interparticle contacts. Those bonding/debonding effects cannot be easily accounted for by
using the average skeleton stress alone and a suitable constitutive variable, related to the bonding
phenomena, must be selected for this purpose.
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The overall magnitude of the bonding force will be the product of i) the number of water menisci per unit
volume of the solid fraction and ii) the mean intensity of the interparticle forces created by the menisci. As
a first approximation, it is assumed that the number of menisci is proportional to the percentage of volume
occupied by the gas/menisci region, roughly 1- Sl. Thus the bonding-related stress variable is:
(1 Sl ) f (s)
(14)
where f(s) is the mean interparticle force that is presumed to be dependent on suction. The function f(s) is
evaluated using Fishers (1926) solution, plotted in Figure 1.
Meniscus
liquid
Gas
Bulk
liquid
Figure 6. Schematic view of an unsaturated soil showing saturated regions and menisci/gas regions
(Wheeler et al., 2003).
Interparticle forces provide the bonding effect that underlies the capacity of unsaturated soils to form
looser arrangements that would not be stable if the material were saturated. It is reasonable to expect
that, if the variable is representative of the interparticle forces, it should be directly related to the
additional void ratio that an unsaturated soil is capable of sustaining. To test this hypothesis, results from
isotropic compression tests performed under several suctions by Sivakumar (1993) and Sharma (1998)
are considered. Sivakumar (1993) tested compacted Speswhite kaolin and Sharma (1998) a compacted
mixture of bentonite and kaolin.
Figure 7 shows that the experimental results can be unified by considering that the ratio e/es depends on
the bonding variable through:
e
1 a 1 exp(b )
es
(15)
where e is the void ratio at a specific applied average skeleton (Bishops) stress and suction and es is the
void ratio in the saturated virgin consolidation line at the same applied average skeleton stress; a and b
are fitting parameters.
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The ratio e/es, therefore, represents the excess void ratio sustained by the unsaturated soil and it is a
simple function of the bonding variable, In Gallipoli et al. (2003), it is further shown that the same
function of the bonding variable applies also to the critical state of kaolin (Wheeler and Sivakumar 2000)
and of other soils such as a lateritic gravel (Toll, 1990). It is perhaps somewhat unexpected that a
framework based on a capillary model is able to represent so successfully the behaviour of soils
containing a significant proportion of clayey particles. However, the approach appears to have a wide
range of applicability; subsequent results presented by Gallipoli et al. (2008) demonstrate that the same
approach applies successfully to the consolidation and critical state data of Jossigny silt (Cui, 1993) and
of Barcelona clayey silt (Barrera, 2002).
a)
c)
b)
d)
Figure 7. a) Normal isotropic compression lines at constant suction in terms of average skeleton stress
(Sharma, 1998). b) Excess void ratio over the stable saturated void ratio (e/e s) as a function of the
bonding variable (data by Sharma, 1998). c) Normal isotropic compression lines at constant suction in
terms of average skeleton stress (Sivakumar, 1993). d) Excess void ratio over the stable saturated void
ratio (e/es) as a function of the bonding variable (data by Sivakumar, 1993). (Gallipoli et al. 2003).
Using those two stress variables, a constitutive model can be developed following the same steps as in
the construction of the BBM (Gallipoli et al., 2003). The resulting model has a somewhat higher degree of
complexity but it is capable of reproducing rather involved features of behaviour using a single yield
surface. An example is provided in Figure 8 where the results of a test performed by Sharma (1998)
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involving two cycles of wetting and drying are plotted together with the computed results using the model.
A good agreement can be noted, in spite of the rather intricate behaviour observed. It is interesting to
note that the additional compression that is observed in both drying stages would not be obtained by the
BBM model unless an additional yield surface with a complex hardening behaviour was specified. In the
new model, the behaviour is readily reproduced employing a single LC yield surface and no additional
assumptions.
Figure 8. Experimental results and model predictions for wetting-drying cycles of a specimen of
compacted bentonite-kaolin mixture subjected to a constant isotropic net stress of 10 kPa (experimental
data from Sharma, 1998).
A coupled Hydro-mechanical constitutive model
A conspicuous omission in the BBM and other early model formulations was the lack of a specific model
to describe the variation of water content or degree of saturation due to changes of stresses and/or
suction. If the mechanical model is defined in terms of net stresses, the consequences are limited as
there is no direct coupling between hydraulic and mechanical model. Thus in the BBM, hydraulic
behaviour was simply defined in terms of a state surface. However, when degree of saturation or other
hydraulic parameters enter the definition of the constitutive model, the hydraulic-mechanical coupling
must be carefully considered. In this context, Houslbys expressions (10,11) linking mechanical and
hydraulic variables, are especially relevant.
The issue of the hydraulic component of the constitutive model was first addressed by Wheeler (1996)
and Dangla et al. (1997). A number of models coupling hydraulic and mechanical models have been
developed (e.g. Vaunat et al. 2000, Wheeler et al. 2003, Sheng et al. 2004). In this section a model
recently proposed by Zhou et al. (2012a, 2012b) is summarily described. Two aspects are explicitly
considered: the hysteretic relationship between the effective degree of saturation and suction for an
arbitrary drying/wetting path and the change in the degree of saturation due to the stress change under
constant suctions. The retention curve of a soil, in terms of effective degree of saturation, Se (equation
(12)), is governed by the suction as well as the volumetric strain due to net stresses, v (Sheng and
Zhou, 2011). The change of the degree of saturation can be expressed conceptually as follows:
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dSe
Se
ds De d v
s
(16)
where D is a general function that defines the effect of volumetric strain on the effective degree of
saturation that is caused by a net stress change. The first term on the right-hand side of equation (16)
accounts for the change of the effective degree of saturation under a constant net stress. A standard
laboratory water retention test can be used to calibrate this term directly. The second term on the righthand side accounts for the change of the effective degree of saturation due to the net stress under a
constant suction. A suction-controlled compression test can be used to determine this term. The popular
van Genuchten expression (van Genuchten, 1980) is used to define the main drying curve:
Sed
where
s md
1
ad
nd
(17)
ad , md and nd are three fitting parameters. The same expression but with different parameters is
used for the main wetting branch. In addition, a simple boundary scanning rule is adopted here to
describe the non-linear scanning (wetting/drying) loops between the main wetting and drying branches.
Similar approaches can be found in Li (2005) and Pedroso et al. (2008). Figure 9a shows the hysteresis
loops inside the domain between the main drying and wetting curves that are derived from the model.
Viaene et al. (1994) presented a wetting-drying test on a sand sample. As shown in Figure 9b the
hydraulic model is capable to reproduce satisfactorily the observed behaviour.
a)
b)
Figure 9. a) Main drying and wetting retention curves and computed hysteretic loops. b) Hysteresis of a
sand sample: observations (Viaene et al. 1994) and computed results.
A second differential feature of this model is the adoption of the effective degree of saturation instead of
suction as the SCV. For the FCV, effective degree of saturation is also incorporated in a modified form of
Bishops stress:
ij ij Se sij
(18)
The basic assumption is that In the space of v ln p , the normal compression lines (i.e., volume change
equation) for both saturated and unsaturated soil are assumed to take the following form:
N Se ln p
(19)
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where, p is the mean modified Bishop stress and N is the intercept of the normal compression lines with
the v-axis when ln p=0. A suitable variation of with effective degree of saturation has been postulated
(Zhou et al., 2012a). The volume change equation (19) can be rewritten in an incremental form as:
dv Se
dp Se
ln p dSe
p
Se
(20)
Equation (20) indicates that the volume change can consist of two parts: the first part is due to the stress
change and the second part is due to the change of the effective degree of saturation. If Se is fixed, (such
as for loading under the saturated or the driest condition), the second term on the right hand side of the
above equation will degenerate to zero. In this case, equation (20) defines the normal compression lines
without the bonding/debonding effect. It also indicates that the bonding effect due to drying can be
weakened or eliminated by raising the effective degree of saturation. In other words, an unsaturated soil
can be de-structured/debonded by soaking it in water, and a saturated soil can be structured/bonded by
desaturation.
Equation (20) can be understood by inspecting Figure 10a. In the loading process under a constant
suction, the second term of equation (20), which describes the debonding effect, is always larger than
zero since dSe is larger than or equal to zero. As shown in Figure 10b, although Se) is less than (the
slope of the compression line under saturated conditions), the apparent slope of the compression curve
for an initially unsaturated soil can still be larger than that for its saturated counterpart because of the
debonding effect. As a consequence, the prediction of a typical drying loading process takes the desired
form shown in Figure 10b.
a)
b)
Figure 10. a) Volume change in a process involving a change of degree of saturation. b) Bondingdebonding effects during a drying-loading path.
The model can be readily extended to deviatoric stresses following the same procedure as in the
development of the BBM. Therefore the hardening rule is expressed as:
vp
Se
N
ln p
(21)
and the yield surfaces for triaxial stress states are depicted in Figure 11. It can be noted that the
additional third axis now corresponds to effective degree of saturation, Se.
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Figure 11. Yield surfaces under triaxial stress states.

As an example of the performance of the model, the experimental data of Cunningham et al. (2003) are
examined. They presented the results of a series of suction-controlled isotropic compression tests under
varying suctions on reconstituted silty clay that comprised a mix of 20% pure Speswhite kaolin, 10%
London clay and 70% silica silt. The test data as well as the model simulations are shown in Figure 12a.
The comparisons indicate that the predicted curves match the experimental data well. It is important to
note that there is only one initial state (s = 0) used for all predictions. The initial states for other suction
levels (s = 400kPa, 650kPa and 1000kPa, respectively) are calculated through the drying process from
the initial state at zero suction. In addition, Cunningham et al. (2003) undertook a series of unconfined
shearing tests in which the samples were dried on the bench to a variety of predetermined moisture
contents, corresponding to suctions in the range of 270-1220kPa. The samples were then sheared under
constant moisture content (undrained) conditions to failure. Throughout shearing, suction probes were
used to monitor the suction changes within the specimens. Figure 12b compares the test data with the
model simulations, where it can be seen that the proposed model captures the key features of the
observations of the unsaturated reconstituted soil behaviour under undrained loading.
a)
b)
Figure 12. Comparison of model computations and experimental observations from Cunningham et al.
(2003). a) Isotropic compression tests. b) Unconfined undrained compression tests.
EXAMPLES OF APPLICATION
Two quite diverse examples of applications are presented here to demonstrate the performance of the
developments reviewed above in engineering problems. The first one involves the collapse of foundations
due to saturation and the second one concerns the behaviour of a compacted bentonite barrier under
non-isothermal conditions.
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Foundation collapse due to wetting

Pereira Barreto town is located on the right hand bank of the Tiet River, near the confluence with the
Paran River in the North West of the So Paulo State in Brazil. A 50m high dam was constructed just
downstream of the town causing a general rise of the groundwater level in the area. Because it was
known that some of the buildings were founded in potentially collapsible soil, a comprehensive site
investigation was performed including soil borings, in situ tests and laboratory tests. A monitoring system
was also installed before the reservoir level rise; it is one of the rare occasions in which the development
of collapse settlements has been measured in full.
A typical soil profile is presented in Figure 13; part of the town is founded on a collapsible colluvium layer
that overlies a residual soil. The colluvium is a lateritic fine sandy soil without active clay minerals. A thin
gravel layer separates colluvium and residual soil. The initial degree of saturation of the materials is quite
low, in the region 30%-40%, consistent with the climate conditions of the site.
Figure 13. Soil profile at Pereira Barreto town.
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Figure 14. Building PB-1, Pereira Barreto town: Soil profile and water level elevation, foundation and
observed and computed foundation settlements.
As expected, the ground water table rise brought about collapse settlements that affected some buildings
causing various degrees of damage. There were about 20 sites monitored, here only the measurements
of two buildings, PB-1 and PB-3, are discussed; they are representative of the range of foundation
behaviour encountered. Figure 14 shows the settlements of two points of the foundation of building PB-1;
settlements of more than 100 mm were measured. The foundation was just over 1 m deep in the
colluvium. In the same Figure, the evolution of the water level as measured in a nearby observation point
is also plotted; it can be noted that it reached the lower part of the colluvium layer. The same information
on building PB-3 is provided in Figure 15. Foundation is slightly shallower and settlements were
significantly smaller, around 20 mm. In this case, the water level reached only the gravel layer.
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Figure 15. Building PB-1, Pereira Barreto town: Soil profile and water level elevation, foundation and
observed and computed foundation settlements.
Block samples of the colluvium were obtained from the site and tested in suction controlled oedometers.
Two types of tests were run, loading tests under constant suction (Figure 16a) and wetting tests from two
suction values (200 kPa and 60 kPa) performed under several applied stresses (Figure 16b). The results
obtained correspond to a typical behaviour of an unsaturated soil. The consolidation lines (Figure 16a)
plot further to the right as suction increases, the saturated consolidation line constitutes the lower
behaviour bound. In Figure 16b, the results corresponding to the collapse wetting tests performed from a
suction of 60 kPa are shown. After collapse, the void ratio stress state of the soil lies close to the
saturated consolidation line. Similar results but higher collapse values were obtained when flooding the
samples at a suction of 200 kPa. The test results have been modelled using the BBM. The computed
collapse strains corresponding to wetting tests from 60 kPa and 200 kPa suction values are compared
with the experimental results in Figure 17. It can be noted that the prediction is good at low stresses but
collapse strains are overestimated at higher stress values. This is a consequence of the inability of the
standard BBM to reproduce a maximum of collapse. However, since the agreement was adequate for the
relevant stress level range, the BBM, calibrated in this manner, was used to perform the calculations. The
challenge is to reproduce the range of observed field behaviour using a single set of parameters obtained
from the laboratory testing programme.
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a)
b)
Figure 16. a) Stress paths and results of oedometer loading tests under constant suction. b) Stress paths
and results of oedometer wetting collapse tests.
a)
b)
Figure 17. Computed and observed collapse strains. a) Wetting from 60 kPa suction. b) Wetting from
200 kPa suction.
The settlements computed in this way have been added to Figures 14 and 15. The agreement is quite
satisfactory. In the case of building PB-1 (Figure 14), large settlements are predicted, that only start when
the water level is already quite high. It is also interesting to note that a rather large reactivation of
settlement is computed when a rather modest increase of water level occurs, just as observed. The more
muted settlement response of the foundation of building PB-3 (Figure 15) is also successfully reproduced.
The different behaviour is due to the different foundation arrangements and, especially, to differences in
soil profile. In the latter case, the water level does not reach the collapsible colluvium layer, but the
variation of suction due to the presence of a higher water table is sufficient to cause some settlements,
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although of smaller magnitude. The capability of the unsaturated formulation to provide a satisfactory
explanation of the various settlement observations is therefore demonstrated.
Bentonite barrier under non-isothermal conditions
In several countries employing nuclear power, deep geological storage or disposal is an intensively
studied option for the long-term confinement of heat-emitting high level nuclear waste (HLW) (Gens,
2003). The construction of deep repositories will involve the excavation of a network of tunnels in a
suitable host rock a few hundred meters below surface. The canisters containing nuclear waste will be
placed in either horizontal drifts or vertical boreholes. In most designs the canisters are surrounded by an
engineered barrier made up of compacted, and therefore unsaturated, expansive clay; normally a
bentonite is used.
The major actions that affect the bentonite barrier are heating from the canister and hydration from the
surrounding rock. Fig. 18 shows, in a schematic way, some of the thermo-hydraulic processes occurring
in the bentonite barrier and immediate adjacent rock. At the inner boundary, the barrier receives a very
strong heat flux from the canisters. The dominant heat transfer mechanism is conduction that occurs
through the three phases of the material. A temperature gradient will therefore develop in the near field
and heat dissipation will be basically controlled by the thermal conductivity of clay barrier and host rock.
The heat supplied by the cansiter results in a large temperature increase in the inner zone of the barrier,
and strong water evaporation that induces drying of bentonite. Degree of saturation and water pressure
will reduce significantly in this region. Vapour arising from the drying of the bentonite will move outwards
until finding a cooler region where it will condensate, causing a local increase in water saturation. Vapour
diffusion is a significant mechanism of water transfer mechanism and it also contributes, but to a much
lesser extent, to heat transport.
Due to the high suction present initially in the unsaturated material that constitutes the backfill, hydration
will take place with water moving from the host rock towards the barrier. The distribution of water potential
inside the clay barrier is strongly affected by the phenomena of bentonite drying and vapour transport, as
described above. Hydration should eventually lead to saturation of the barrier, but full saturation times
can be very long due to the low permeability of the bentonite and/or the host rock.
In addition to the thermo-hydraulic behaviour, there are also important mechanical phenomena occurring.
Drying of the bentonite will cause shrinking of the material whereas hydration will produce swelling that
may be quite strong in highly compacted bentonite barriers. Because the barrier is largely confined
between heater and rock, the main result of hydration is the development of swelling pressures in a
process quite akin to a swelling pressure test. The magnitude of the stresses developed is critically
dependent on the emplacement density of the bentonite and may reach values of several MPa. A crucial
feature of the THM behaviour described is that all those phenomena are strongly coupled, interacting with
each other in a complex manner; therefore a coupled THM formulation and computer code have to be
used. They are described in Olivella et al. (1994, 1996).
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Figure 18. Thermo-hydraulic processes occurring in the engineered barrier and adjacent rock
This application refers to a large scale heating test (FEBEX test) performed in the Grimsel underground
laboratory (Switzerland) to simulate the thermo-hydro-mechanical behaviour of the bentonite barrier
under repository conditions. To this end, the FEBEX test simulates, at full scale, the Spanish repository
concept for HLW that envisages placing the waste-containing canisters in horizontal drifts surrounded by
an engineered barrier made up of compacted bentonite. To install the experiment, a 2.28 m diameter
circular tunnel was excavated in the GTS underground laboratory using a TBM machine. The tunnel is
70.4 m long and the final 17.4 m section was selected for the performance of the test. In the test area,
two 4,300 W heaters, simulating the thermal effect of the canisters, were placed in the axis of the
horizontal drift. The heaters were 4.54 m long and 0.90 m in diameter and were intended to simulate the
release of heat by HLW. The space between the rock surface and the heaters was backfilled using
blocks of compacted bentonite. Finally, the test area was sealed by a 2.7m long concrete plug. Fig. 19
shows a schematic layout of the test.
The host rock is good quality Central Aare granite crossed, in the test zone, by a lamprophyre dyke. The
clay is a bentonite (wL = 98-106, wP = 50-56) obtained from a quarry in the volcanic zone of Serrata de
Njar in Southern Spain. It has high smectite content, in the range of 88%-96%., The bentonite blocks
3
used to construct the barrier were compacted to a dry density of 1.7 g/cm at an average water content of
14.4%. Because there were small gaps between blocks and between the clay barrier and the rock, the
3
overall dry density of the emplaced barrier was 1.6 g/cm . The behaviour of the unsaturated compacted
bentonite was modelled by the BBM where the behaviour inside the yield locus has been modified to take
into account the large swelling potential of the material.
27
Antonio Gens
Figure 19. Layout of the FEBEX in situ test

After test installation, four months were allowed to elapse before switching the heaters on. During this
time there was some hydration of the barrier from the rock but, obviously, no thermal loading. During the
heating stage, the test was temperature-controlled with a prescribed maximum temperature of 100C at
the contact between liner and bentonite. To achieve this, the sequence of operations was as follows: i)
the heaters were switched at a constant power of 1200 W each during 20 days with an aim to identify the
thermal response of the system and to adjust the control algorithm; ii) afterwards, the power of each
heater was increased to 2000 W and kept constant until a temperature of 100C at the contact between
liner and bentonite was reached (this happened after 33 days); iii) subsequently, the system operated
under temperature control, i.e. power was adjusted to keep a constant 100C maximum temperature on
the liner/barrier contact.
Model predictions and observations are compared for the first five years of the test in Figures 20
(temperature evolution) and 21 (relative humidity evolution). Relative humidity is plotted because it was
the variable directly observed; of course, relative humidity and suction are directly related via Kelvins
equation (2). It can be seen that a good reproduction of the observations is achieved. Only a small
selection of the results can be shown here, more comparisons are presented in Gens et al. (2009). A
more demanding test of the modelling process was provided by the observations performed during
dismantling.
Exactly after five years of heating, Heater 1 (the one closest to the concrete plug) was switched off. After
allowing 33 days for cooling, the bentonite was carefully removed up to the end section of Heater 1,
leaving the rest of the barrier in place. Subsequently, a new shotcrete plug was constructed and the test
on the remaining part of the experiment continued. A detailed description of the procedures during
dismantling is presented in Brcena et al. (2003).
28
Antonio Gens
100
100
90
90
80
in-situ test
Section D1 (x= 4.42 m)
70
Temperature (C)
Temperature (C)
80
60
50
40
30
test
model
20
300
600
900
1200
50
40
30
test
1500
model
r = 0.48 m
20
r = 1.10 m
60
r = 0.48 m
r = 0.82 m
10
in-situ test
Section D2 (x= 14.38 m)
70
r = 0.82 m
r = 1.10 m
10
0
1800
300
600
900
1200
1500
1800
Time (days)
Time (days)
100
100
90
90
80
80
Relative humidity (%)
Relative humidity (%)
Figure 20. Evolution of temperatures in the bentonite barrier. Sections D1 and D2. Observations and
computed results.
70
60
50
40
in-situ test
Section C (x= 1.80 m)
model
test
30
20
60
50
40
in-situ test
Section H (x= 9.50 m)
30
test
20
r = 1.10 m
10
70
model
r = 0.82 m
10
r = 0.60 m
r = 1.07 m
r = 0.52 m
0
0
300
600
900
1200
Time (days)
1500
1800
300
600
900
1200
1500
1800
Time (days)
Figure 21. Evolution of relative humidity in the bentonite barrier. Sections C (cool) and H (hot).
Observations and computed results.
29
Antonio Gens
This partial test dismantling allowed the direct and detailed observation of the state of the barrier after five
years of heating and hydration (Fig. 22a). In addition, large amounts of quantitative data could be
obtained; this information is very valuable to get an independent check on the performance of the
numerical model as well as on the reliability of predictions. At selected sections, a large number of
specimens were cored out from the barrier (Fig. 22b) and dry density and water content were determined
immediately in a field laboratory in order to minimize disturbance and humidity loss. This comprehensive
set of values of dry density and water content helped to provide a complete picture of the state of the
bentonite barrier. Thanks to the high density of determinations, contours of dry density and water content
could be plotted in the sampled sections. It was observed that the process of hydration and associated
density changes has been basically axisymmetric around the barrier.
a)
b)
Figure 22. a) State of the bentonite barrier after five years of heating and hydration. b) Bentonite sampling
during dismantling.
Fig. 23 shows the all measured values of water content and dry density as a function of distance to the
tunnel axis for a section near the centre of Heater 1; it is therefore representative of a hot region of the
test. It can be observed that, as expected, water content increases as the rock is approached, consistent
with the process of natural hydration from the rock. It is also interesting to observe that the part of the
barrier close to the heater is still below its initial value of water content, a consequence of the strong
drying that has occurred in this area. In spite that a certain amount of water has already reached the inner
region, it is still insufficient, after five years, to compensate for the initial drying. It is also noticeable that
the barrier as a whole is very far from full saturation at the end of the heating stage. The distribution of dry
density also shows the expected patterns. Close to the rock the clay has expanded, exhibiting values of
dry density well below its initial value. In contrast, in the zone near the heater the dry density has
increased. Because of the confined nature of the test, the variation of dry density in the inner part is
compensated by the reduction of dry density in the outer part. It should be noted that the change of dry
density (i.e. porosity) is the combined effect of expansion due to temperature increase (thermal effect),
suction changes (hydraulic effect) and stress increase due to the development of swelling pressure
(mechanical effect).
Water content and dry density values are also plotted for a cool Section (Fig. 24) where the temperature
increase is very limited. There are some differences in the patterns of observations. Water content again
increases as the rock is approached but, now, there is also a net (but small) gain of water content near
the centre of the tunnel. There has been no drying in this region but the amount of hydration is very small,
even after five years, because of the thickness of the barrier in this section. The dry density also shows a
significant reduction close to the rock but a somewhat smaller increase in the inner part where the change
appears to be more uniform. Again, the net volume change of the section is quite small.
30
Antonio Gens
10 14
13
16
Section number
0.35
15
18 22 27
31
0.30
1.65
3
Dry density (Mg/m )
Test
Water content
1.70
Post-Morten Analysis
Section 27
x = 6.85 (m)
Model
0.25
0.20
Initial value
0.15
Initial value
1.60
1.55
Section 27
x = 6.85 (m)
1.50
Test
Model
1.45
0.10
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
0.4
1.2
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
Distance to axis (m)
Figure 23. Values of water content and dry density during dismantling in Section 27 (hot Section).
Section number
10 14
13
16
0.35
15
18 22 27
31
1.70
Section 15
x = 3.27 (m)
0.30
1.65
3
Dry density (Mg/m )
Test
Water content
Model
0.25
0.20
Initial value
0.15
1.60
Initial value
1.55
Section 15
x = 3.27 (m)
1.50
Test
Model
1.45
0.10
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
Figure 24. Values of water content and dry density during dismantling in Section 15 (cool Section).
31
Antonio Gens
It is interesting to observe that the results of the numerical analysis show a very good agreement with the
measurements; in this case the computed results are obviously predictions. The patterns of the hot and
cool sections are reproduced very well and the quantitative agreement between observations and
predictions is quite close. These comparisons, therefore, increase the confidence that formulation,
constitutive law and computer code manage to reproduce closely the relevant features of the engineering
system and associated coupled phenomena.
CONCLUDING REMARKS
The advances of Unsaturated Soils Mechanics in the last few decades have been abundant and wideranging and it is still an area of very active research at present. In this paper some key aspects of such
developments have been summarily reviewed and discussed:
-
Water potential and suction underlie much of our understanding of the mechanics of unsaturated
soils. Matric suction is the most important potential component regarding mechanical behaviour
of unsaturated soils. It has been argued that a simple capillary model is insufficient to fully
explain matric suction; an adsorptive component must also be incorporated.
It is unambiguously stated that at least two constitutive variables are required to represent
adequately the full range of unsaturated soil behaviour. A number of alternatives are possible
with different advantages and disadvantages. Some of the most widely used ones turn to be
equivalent from the point of view of the work rate equation. At the end, the choice of constitutive
variables is largely a matter of convenience.
The development of elastoplastic constitutive models able to integrate a wide range of features
of unsaturated soils behaviour is one of the hallmarks of modern Unsaturated Soil Mechanics.
Those advances have been illustrated by reference to three different models of different degree
of complexity. Starting from the simple BBM formulated in terms of net stresses, developments
lead to the use of Bishops stresses, incorporation of microstructural variables and coupling
between hydraulic and mechanical behaviour.
Those developments together with advanced coupled formulations and computer codes (not
described in this paper) allow tackling engineering problems involving unsaturated soils in a
more rigorous and rational manner. Two examples of different degrees of complexity have been
presented to support this point.
It is also noteworthy that the field of Unsaturated Soil Mechanics is proving to have a wider field of
applicability than could be conventionally expected. Unsaturated Soil Mechanics concepts and tools have
turned out to be very useful in problems such as porous materials partially saturated with oil and water
(De Gennaro et al., 2004) or in the study of freezing soil (Nishimura et al. 2009). This cross-fertilization
between different areas of research augurs well for the future of the subject. It is likely that the discipline
will be able to provide effective answers to increasingly complex civil and environmental engineering
problems as well as in other related areas.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Much of the work reported here has been performed with colleagues at the Technical University of
Catalonia (UPC) and elsewhere. To all of them, my grateful acknowledgement is due.
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Antonio Gens

Antonio Gens obtained his Civil Engineering

Antonio Gens je diplomiral na Gradbeni fakulteti

mnoici razlinih geotehninih projektov,

community has been particularly close. He is or

pomena. Bil je lan sedmih razlinih tehninih

THE DEVELOPMENT OF UNSATURATED SOIL MECHANICS

where is total stress, Sr is the degree of saturation and ij is Kroneckers delta.

the two constitutive variables are linked

where Sr is the degree of saturation at zero suction (generally taken as 1) and Sr

is the residual degree

ELASTOPLASTIC CONSTITUTIVE MODELS

to provide a consistent framework for an integrated understanding of the various features of

MEAN NET STRESS, p

Yield curve Yield curve

MEAN NET STRESS, p

Figure 11. Yield surfaces under triaxial stress states.

Foundation collapse due to wetting

Figure 13. Soil profile at Pereira Barreto town.

Figure 19. Layout of the FEBEX in situ test

Relative humidity (%)

Relative humidity (%)

Distance to axis (m)

Distance to axis (m)

Distance to axis (m)

Distance to axis (m)

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