Grants and Contributions:

Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year (2017-2018 to 2018-2019).

The future of modeling in geotechnical earthquake engineering will be based almost exclusively onx000D
Performance-Based Seismic Design philosophy that is based on displacements or deformations. A realisticx000D
numerical simulation of deformation of geo-structures subjected to earthquake loading is very complex. Whilex000D
there are many advanced tool available, one of the main questions raised when results of a numerical analysisx000D
are evaluated is: "How much can (should) we trust numerical simulations?" Trust in results obtained fromx000D
numerical analysis is gained through verification and validation. Verification determines if the numericalx000D
model is correctly being solved for the intended mathematical equation of interest, while validation establishesx000D
the level of representativeness of the model. This proposal will conduct a detailed and critical verification ofx000D
the program FLAC3D for the problem of seismic wave propagation. The verification will consist on evaluatingx000D
the numerical accuracy of the program by comparing its performance to a suite of mathematical solutionsx000D
regarding elastodynamic and poroelastodynamic problems. Crucial elements of numerical modeling such asx000D
spatial and temporal discretization, and initial and boundary conditions will be investigated together with thex000D
embedded coupled formulation of solid-fluid interaction. Furthermore, an advanced nonlinear model newlyx000D
implemented in the program will be evaluated in comparison to the one in OPENSEES program for a variety ofx000D
verification problems. These computational platforms and the intended model are being increasingly used inx000D
academia and advanced engineering practice, and for that reason this study is a paramount step towardsx000D
supporting further research on advanced numerical simulation of seismic wave propagation. Results from thisx000D
proposal will also allow a better understanding of the mechanics at play during modelling of earthquake wavesx000D
enabling the Canadian professional practice to use outcomes of this study to develop safer, more reliable, andx000D
more economical designs.