Fundamentals of Plasticity in Geomechanics

This book presents a concise yet reasonably comprehensive overview of fundamental notions of plasticity in relation to geomechanics. It is intended to provide the reader with a general background in soil/rock plasticity and , as such, should be perceived as an introduction to the broad area of inelastic response of geomaterials.

The book is divided into eight chapters. Chapters 1 & 2 start with an outline of the basic concepts and fundamental postulates, followed by a review of the elastic-perfectly plastic formulations in geomechanics. The isotropic strain-hardening framework and isotropic-kinematic hardening rules, the latter formulated within the context of bounding surface plasticity, are discussed in Chapters 3 & 4. Chapter 5 outlines the basic techniques for numerical integration, whereas Chapter 6 gives an overview of procedures for limit analysis that include applications of lower and upper bound theorems. Both these chapters are introductory in nature and intended to provide a basic background in the respective areas. Chapter 7 deals with descriptionof inherent anisotropy in geomaterials. Finally, Chapter 8 provides an overview of the experimental response of geomaterials.

The text is intended primarily for Ph.D./M.Sc. students working in the areas of soil/rock mechanics. but it may also be of interest to engineers familiar with established notions of contemporary continumm mechanics.

Dr. Stan Pietruszczak is professor of Civil Engineering at McMaster University in Canada. His research interests are in the following areas:
Geotechnical Engineering: Modelling of mechanical response of geomaterials (soils, rocks, etc) to both monotonic and fluctuating loads. Description of inherent and induced anisotropy through incorporation of some tensorial functions reflecting the evolution of material microstructure. Modelling of the chemo-mechanical interaction in rocks / soils. Description of strain localization phenomenon, in dry and saturated soils, through a homogenization technique.
Structural Mechanics: Numerical analysis of concrete structures, including nuclear containment structures. Assessment of seismic stability of masonry structures. Modelling of the mechanical effects of alkali-aggregate reaction in hydraulic structures. Description of the response of saturated cemented aggregate mixtures, including localized deformation.
Biomechanics: Description of aging and functional adaptation of bone. Evaluation of risk of fracture of bones; modelling of bone-implant interaction.

He has published over 140 refereed papers.