2006 BURMISTER LECTURE
Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics
Columbia University
New York City
Role of Soil Modeling in
Geotechnical Predictions
Andrew J. Whittle
Professor of Civil and Environmental
Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
November 21, 2006
2:30-3:30 pm
InterSchool Laboratory, Schapiro Center
ABSTRACT: This Lecture reviews briefly some
contributions in the development of soil models that are capable of describing
realistically the measured effective stress-strain-strength behavior of
soils.
The role of these advanced,
relatively complex models in geotechnical predictions will then be critically
evaluated
in the context of extensive
research to investigate the performance of driven pile foundations and deep excavations
in clay.
Soil modelling plays an
essential role on predictions of near field stresses and pore pressures around
driven piles, while far field
ground
movements may be well estimated by much simpler analytical methods.
Soil modelling appears to play little role in
the deflection mode shapes of braced walls in soft clay, but controls
predictions surface settlements and helps to explain arching mechanisms in the
retained soil.
Other simpler stability
analyses may be sufficient for assessing basal stability.
In light of these findings, the
talk will then consider effects of soil modelling in predicting the effects of
soft ground tunnel construction and give a brief overview of current research
on this topic.
[Acknowledgment: The 2006 Burmister Lecture is Sponsored by the Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers]
Check also the ASCE Mueser-Rutledge Lecture
Prof. Andrew
Whittle is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a specialist in the field of
geotechnical engineering. Much of his
research work deals with constitutive modeling of soil behavior and
applications in predicting the performance of foundations and underground
construction projects. His research has
been widely used in the design of foundation systems for deepwater oil
production facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. He has worked extensively on problems of
soil-structure interaction for urban excavation and tunneling projects
including the Central Artery-Third Harbor Tunnel (CA/T) and MBTA South Piers
Transitway projects in Boston, and Tren Urbano
in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Most recently he has led research efforts in
the application of wireless sensor networks for monitoring underground water
supply systems and construction projects.
Dr Whittle is a Co-Editor of the International
Journal of Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics, and is an
editorial board member for the ASCE Journal of Geotechnical and
Geoenvironmental Engineering and the Canadian Geotechical Journal. He is an active consultant who has worked on
more than 25 major onshore and offshore construction projects. In 2004 he was an expert witness for the Land
Transport Authority in Singapore
investigating the Collapse of the Nicoll
Highway. He
currently serves on the National Research Council and National Academy of
Engineering (NRC/NAE) Committee on New Orleans Hurricane Protection
Projects. This panel is responsible for
reviewing the investigations of the US Army Corps of Engineers into the
performance of the hurricane protection systems during Hurricane Katrina. He is also concurrently serving on an
Independent Saftey Review Advisory Panel for the Governor of
Massachusetts. This panel has been
set-up as part of a Stem-to Stern safety audit of the Metropoltian Highway
System in Boston
following a series of structural accidents in the CA/T tunnels.
Dr
Whittle received his Sc.D in Geotechnical Engineering from MIT in 1987, where
he was also a John F. Kennedy Scholar (1982-1984), and his B.Sc(Eng.) with First Class Honors in Civil
Engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, London in 1981. He joined the MIT faculty in 1988 and was
promoted to full Professor in 2000. Dr Whittle has published more than 100
papers in refereed journals and conferences, and received several awards for
his work from the American Society of Civil Engineers, including the Casagrande
Award (1994), the Croes Medal (1994), Middlebrooks Prize (1997, 2002, and 2005)
and Huber Research Award (1998). He is a
licensed professional engineer in New York State.
ASCE Mueser-Rutledge Lecture
(Nov 21 at CUNY Graduation Center, 6 pm)
What Caused the Collapse of the Nicoll Highway, Singapore?
Andrew J. Whittle
Professor of Civil and
Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
In April 2004, the catastrophic
failure of a 30m deep braced excavation for the new Circle Line in Singapore led
to the collapse of the adjacent Nicoll
Highway and the deaths of four construction
workers. This lecture will summarizes
the forensic investigations that have been carried out to understand the
underlying causes of the failure.
Contributing factors include details of the structural connections for
the bracing system, and original design errors in the evaluation of lateral
earth pressures. The lecture will
provide a personal view of the lessons learned from this investigation and the
consequences for future design of deep excavations.
Questions: Hoe I. Ling
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: 212-854-1203