Development and validation of the terrain stability model for assessing landslide instability during heavy rain infiltration

Slope stability is a key topic, not only for engineers but also for politicians, due to the considerable monetary and human losses that landslides can cause every year. In fact, it is estimated that landslides have caused thousands of deaths and economic losses amounting to tens of billions of euros per year around the world. The geological stability of slopes is affected by several factors, such as climate, earthquakes, lithology and rock structures, among others. Climate is one of the main factors, especially when large amounts of rainwater are absorbed in short periods of time. Taking this issue into account, we developed an innovative analytical model using the limit equilibrium method supported by a geographic information system (GIS). This model is especially useful for predicting the risk of landslides in scenarios of heavy unpredictable rainfall. The model, hereafter named terrain stability (or TS) is a 2-D model, is programed in MATLAB and includes a steady-state hydrological term. Many variables measured in the field – topography, precipitation and type of soil – can be added, changed or updated using simple input parameters. To validate the model, we applied it to a real example – that of a landslide which resulted in human and material losses (collapse of a building) at Hundidero, La Viñuela (Málaga), Spain, in February 2010.</p

Tracing back the source of contamination

From the time a contaminant is detected in an observation well, the question of where and when the contaminant was introduced in the aquifer needs an answer. Many techniques have been proposed to answer this question, but virtually all of them assume that the aquifer and its dynamics are perfectly known. This work discusses a new approach for the simultaneous identification of the contaminant source location and the spatial variability of hydraulic conductivity in an aquifer which has been validated on synthetic and laboratory experiments and which is in the process of being validated on a real aquifer

Coupled and multiphysics phenomena

The contributions assembled in the present volume proceed from the lectures of the 2015 ALERT Geomaterials Doctoral School devoted to Coupled and Multiphysics Phenomena. The school has been organized and coordinated by Bernhard Schrefler (Universit\ue0 degli Studi di Padova), Lorenzo Sanavia (Universit\ue0 degli Studi di Padova) and Fr\ue9d\ue9ric Collin (Universit\ue9 de Liege). When dealing with the behaviour of multiphase porous systems, e.g. geomaterials, instances of complexity and interaction are numerous, mainly because of the coexistence of several constituents and phases, their physical and mechanical interactions, their reactivity and their often non-linear behaviour. The study of these coupled processes deals with a large number of applications, e.g. in geomechanics: underground structures (storage, tunnelling), surface structures (earth and concrete dams, embankments) as well as the exploitation of geo-resources (petroleum and gas extraction, mines and quarries). This volume contains nine chapters in which emphasis is given to the presentation of the fundamental and new concepts that help understanding coupled and multiphysics phenomena in porous systems. The contributions cover experimental, theoretical, as well as numerical aspects. The school is divided into three main parts: the description of the couplings in multiphysics phenomena, including the experimental developments; the mathematical modelling of all these coupled processes, with an introduction to the constitutive modelling taking into account the dilatancy, which characterizes the mechanical behaviour of geomaterials; the numerical implementation of the mathematical models, comprising constitutive equations as well as balance equations and finally numerical modelling through advanced applications

Proceedings of the 1st WSEAS International Conference on "Environmental and Geological Science and Engineering (EG'08)"

This book contains the proceedings of the 1st WSEAS International Conference on Environmental and Geological Science and Engineering (EG'08) which was held in Malta, September 11-13, 2008. This conference aims to disseminate the latest research and applications in Renewable Energy, Mineral Resources, Natural Hazards and Risks, Environmental Impact Assessment, Urban and Regional Planning Issues, Remote Sensing and GIS, and other relevant topics and applications. The friendliness and openness of the WSEAS conferences, adds to their ability to grow by constantly attracting young researchers. The WSEAS Conferences attract a large number of well-established and leading researchers in various areas of Science and Engineering as you can see from http://www.wseas.org/reports. Your feedback encourages the society to go ahead as you can see in http://www.worldses.org/feedback.htm The contents of this Book are also published in the CD-ROM Proceedings of the Conference. Both will be sent to the WSEAS collaborating indices after the conference: www.worldses.org/indexes In addition, papers of this book are permanently available to all the scientific community via the WSEAS E-Library. Expanded and enhanced versions of papers published in this conference proceedings are also going to be considered for possible publication in one of the WSEAS journals that participate in the major International Scientific Indices (Elsevier, Scopus, EI, ACM, Compendex, INSPEC, CSA .... see: www.worldses.org/indexes) these papers must be of high-quality (break-through work) and a new round of a very strict review will follow. (No additional fee will be required for the publication of the extended version in a journal). WSEAS has also collaboration with several other international publishers and all these excellent papers of this volume could be further improved, could be extended and could be enhanced for possible additional evaluation in one of the editions of these international publishers. Finally, we cordially thank all the people of WSEAS for their efforts to maintain the high scientific level of conferences, proceedings and journals

Proceedings Of The 18th Annual Meeting Of The Asia Oceania Geosciences Society (Aogs 2021)

The 18th Annual Meeting of the Asia Oceania Geosciences Society (AOGS 2021) was held from 1st to 6th August 2021. This proceedings volume includes selected extended abstracts from a challenging array of presentations at this conference. The AOGS Annual Meeting is a leading venue for professional interaction among researchers and practitioners, covering diverse disciplines of geosciences