New laboratory test procedure for the enhanced calibration of constitutive mode

Abstract

Constitutive model parameters are identified during model calibration through trial-and-error process driven to fit test data. In this research, the calibration of constitutive models is formally handled as an inverse problem. The first phase of this research explores error propagation. Data errors, experimental biases (e.g. improper boundary conditions), and model errors affect the inversion of model parameters and ensuing numerical predictions. Drained and undrained tests are simulated to study the effect of these three classes of errors. Emphasis is placed on the analysis of error surfaces computed by successive forward simulations. The second phase of this research centers on test procedures. Conventional soil tests were developed to create uniform stress and strain fields; consequently, they provide limited amount of information, the inversion is ill-posed, and results enhance uncertainty and error propagation. This research examines soil testing using new, non-conventional loading and boundary conditions to create rich, diverse, non-uniform strain and stress fields. In particular, the flexural excitation of cylindrical soil specimens is shown to provide rich data leading to a more informative test than conventional geotechnical tests. The new test is numerically optimized. Then a set of unique experimental studies is conducted.