Lines of Research: Geotechnics and Environment

Environmental Technologies

In this line of research, basic, multidisciplinary studies are developed, aiming to understand the mechanisms of movement of earth masses and the transport of fluids through the subsoil. Basic and applied studies associated with the disposal of urban and industrial solid waste and the disposal of mining waste/tailings are also developed; the recovery of areas degraded by mass movements and contaminated by organic and inorganic substances, and the prevention or minimization of geo-environmental accidents and damage to the socio-physical environment. To implement these studies, analytical-numerical models, field and laboratory experimental tools and geo-environmental instrumentation and monitoring techniques are developed, as well as risk and historical case analyzes are carried out.

The projects developed in this line involve:

  • Development of field and laboratory experimental procedures for determining stress-strain characteristics and mechanical and hydraulic properties of unsaturated media, with emphasis on tropical soils (residual and colluvial soils; collapsible and expansive soils) and residues of different origins;
  • Development of experimental procedures for determining bio-physical-chemical characteristics associated with processes of evolution of weathering profiles in residual soils and transport of contaminants through the subsoil and groundwater;
  • Study and development of soil and waste instrumentation and monitoring techniques to evaluate the behavior of such materials in the presence of different geo-environmental problems and the implementation of recovery techniques for areas degraded by mass movements or contaminated by organic or inorganic substances, dissolved or not in groundwater;
  • Development of monitoring systems aiming to study soil-climate vegetation interaction in different geo-environmental problems and studies associated with the generation of biogas and/or toxic effluents in landfills/piles of waste from different origins;
  • Development of numerical procedures for analyzing water and/or contaminant infiltration processes in geological environments and waste of different origins;
  • Studies of biodegradation processes of organic contaminants in tropical soils;
  • Study of the behavior of landfill cover systems/solid waste disposal piles;
  • Development of numerical procedures for analyzing the mobility of contaminants in geological environments;
  • Studies of biogeochemical effects of CO2 sequestration processes in geological environments and CH4/CO2 in urban solid waste disposal areas;
  • Studies on the reuse of waste and rejects from different origins in different geotechnical works;
  • Development of computational tools for assessing the susceptibility of damage occurrences and/or analyzing risks associated with geo-environmental events;
  • Remediation of contaminated soils by thermal desorption;
  • Recovery of degraded areas;
  • Monitoring the geological storage of CO2 in geological environments.

Applied Geotechnics

The line of research deals with experimental studies in the field and in the laboratory on the mechanical and hydraulic behavior of natural soils, reinforced soils and pavements, describing rock masses and quantifying their mechanical and hydraulic properties and analyzing the influence of the structure and stratigraphy of rock masses. in geotechnical works. This line also includes the development of new equipment and instrumentation for testing, in addition to the monitoring and evaluation of geotechnical works during and after construction.

The main projects developed in this line of research are:

  • Development and analysis of the behavior of new geotechnical materials through reinforcement techniques and insertion of alternative materials;
  • Development of new soil and geosynthetic testing equipment and techniques;
  • Assessment of the durability of rockfill and geosynthetic materials;
  • Monitoring of dam and slope stabilization works;
  • Use of various waste to improve geotechnical properties for use in paving and earthworks;
  • Development of dynamic methodology for geological-geotechnical investigation;
  • Development of new tools for hydrogeological surveys;
  • Use of geophysical tools in geological modeling;
  • Use of geosynthetics to combat underpressure effects;
  • Behavior of underground excavations;
  • Stability of slopes in rock masses with applications to natural slopes and open pit mining;
  • Geological/geomechanical modeling of rock masses;
  • Study of geotechnical properties of materials that make up alteration profiles of gneissic rocks;
  • Study of CO2 geological storage processes;
  • Development of equipment/sensors for carrying out mechanical tests on rocks;
  • Evaluation of existing methodologies for predicting damage to pipelines resulting from fire opening of trenches in rocky environments

Geomechanics

This line of research proposes the study of the hydromechanical behavior of soils, rocks and geotechnical works through analytical and numerical methods (finite element method, boundary element method, hybrid methods, stochastic methods) and other computational techniques such as neural networks . Analyzes encompass static and dynamic behavior of geostructures using advanced constitutive models of soil and rock behavior.

The main research projects developed in this line are:

  • Stress-deformation analysis of earthworks;
  • Static and dynamic liquefaction of tailings dams;
  • Cyclic behavior of clays;
  • Constitutive models for visco-elastoplastic materials;
  • Probabilistic seismic threat studies;
  • Semi-turbulent water flow in porous materials;
  • Damping of saturated soils under high frequencies;
  • Stability of wells in shale;
  • Stability of wells in fractured masses;
  • Construction of wells in evaporites;
  • CO2 injection for EOR purposes;
  • Geopressure analysis in sedimentary basins;
  • Geomechanical effects in reservoirs;
  • Numerical and experimental studies of sand/solids production processes in oil-producing rocks;
  • Behavior of complex reservoirs.