Special Seminar by Prof Patrick Selvadurai

Prof Patrick Selvadurai, William Scott Professor and James McGill Professor, from the Department of Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics at McGill University, Montreal in Canada, gave a special seminar at the Wessex Institute of Technology.

The lecture was entitled ‘Contact and Inclusion Problems in Biot Poromechanics’. Prof Selvadurai explained that poromechanics studies the behaviour of a porous media which is saturated with a fluid. The solid part of the material is referred to as the matrix which is permeated by a network of pores or voids which is filled with a fluid and are interconnected. It is usual to assume that both the solid matrix and the pore network are continuous and act like sponge. The theory can be applied to many substances such as rocks and soils and other materials. This type of porous material is a solid matrix which can be considered to be elastic and the fluid to be poroelastic. The poroelastic medium can be defined by its permeability and porosity as well as properties of its constituents both solid matrix and fluid.

Although Karl von Terzaghi is considered to be the father of soil mechanics, Maurice Biot developed the theory associated with poromechanics and published a series of papers between 1935 and 1957 on the theory of dynamic poroelasticity (known as Biot theory). This gives an understanding of behaviour of poroelasticity mediums using:

• The equation of linear elasticity for a solid matrix.
• Navier Stokes equation for viscous fluid.
• Darcy’s Law for flow through a porous matrix.

In the theory of dynamic poroelasticity there exists three types of elastic waves, the first of which is a shear transverse wave and the remaining two are longitudinal and compression waves, these are referred to as type I and II waves.

Several applications to Biots theory were given, one of which was the subsidence of the Leaning Tower of Pisa which relates to the contact problems associated with poroelasticity.

The lecture was well received and generated a lively discussion.

Special Seminar by Prof Eckart Schnack

Professor Eckart Schnack from the Karlruhe Institute of Technology in Germany has given a Special Seminar in the newly inaugurated Neptune Lecture room at the Wessex Institute of Technology.

The lecture was entitled “Applying NTFA method for nonlinear homogenization of metal-ceramic composites of AlSi12/Al2O3”

Metal Matrix Composites (MMC) are important lightweight materials because of their excellent mechanic properties. In this work, the 3D model microstructure of AlSi12/Al2O3 with periodic spatial discretization is produced and used as the virtual material for the homogenization process. With an efficient description of the macroscopic thermo-mechanical behavior of metal-ceramic composites, the thermo-mechanical homogenization method, the non-uniform transformation field analysis (NTFA) was adopted and extended by reformulation of the underlying equations. This method is an ’’order reduction’’ technique specifically designed for homogenization problems with micro-mechanical motivation. The implementation of NTFA was based on the finite element method. The homogenized material model was implemented into ABAQUS in structural analysis. Comparison of numerical results with full-field simulation highlights the efficiency of NTFA for three-dimensional homogenization problems.

The lecture was followed with great interest by the participants and resulted in a long and lively discussion.

Prof Schnack is a Member of the Board of Directors of the Wessex Institute of Technology.

Special Seminar by Prof Patrick Selvadurai

Prof Patrick Selvadurai, William Scott Professor and James McGill Professor, from the Department of Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics at McGill University, Montreal in Canada, gave a special seminar at the Wessex Institute of Technology.

The lecture was entitled ‘Contact and Inclusion Problems in Biot Poromechanics’. Prof Selvadurai explained that poromechanics studies the behaviour of a porous media which is saturated with a fluid. The solid part of the material is referred to as the matrix which is permeated by a network of pores or voids which is filled with a fluid and are interconnected. It is usual to assume that both the solid matrix and the pore network are continuous and act like sponge. The theory can be applied to many substances such as rocks and soils and other materials. This type of porous material is a solid matrix which can be considered to be elastic and the fluid to be poroelastic. The poroelastic medium can be defined by its permeability and porosity as well as properties of its constituents both solid matrix and fluid.

Although Karl von Terzaghi is considered to be the father of soil mechanics, Maurice Biot developed the theory associated with poromechanics and published a series of papers between 1935 and 1957 on the theory of dynamic poroelasticity (known as Biot theory). This gives an understanding of behaviour of poroelasticity mediums using:

• The equation of linear elasticity for a solid matrix.
• Navier Stokes equation for viscous fluid.
• Darcy’s Law for flow through a porous matrix.

In the theory of dynamic poroelasticity there exists three types of elastic waves, the first of which is a shear transverse wave and the remaining two are longitudinal and compression waves, these are referred to as type I and II waves.

Several applications to Biots theory were given, one of which was the subsidence of the Leaning Tower of Pisa which relates to the contact problems associated with poroelasticity.

The lecture was well received and generated a lively discussion.

Horse Meat Scandal - Food and Environment 2013

Regarding the recent coverage of the mislabelling of food throughout Europe, we would like to bring to your attention the second international conference on Food and Environment which will be held in Budapest, Hungary from 22-24 April this year.  The conference will cover the important topics of traceability, contamination, regulations, transportation within the food industry, and other related topics.

The aim of the conference is to emphasise the effects of modern food production processes on the environment and human health, and to initiate discussion on the best ways to provide food of required quality, sufficient quantities and in a sustainable way.

The many advances made over the past century in food production have resulted in the possibility of feeding the whole of humanity. These advances have been achieved by the introduction of new production practices and a variety of added substances aimed at enhancing the quality and safety of food products; the whole process being affected by other environmental conditions such as contamination of air, water and soil resulting from sources other than agriculture. On the other hand there are examples where food production and food processing have detrimental effects on the environment. Some of the major challenges remain with extensive farming, which though offering higher productivity and larger volumes, should neither compromise the quality of the product nor cause undue suffering to animals.

Given the importance of this problem which affects the whole world population, it is essential to understand the consequences that food production, processes and demands can have on the food consumed daily. Of particular importance are the effects on human health and the well-being of the population, as well as the more general issues related to possible damage to the environment and ecology.

Food-related problems, in spite of their importance, have not been sufficiently well discussed in relation to the possible consequences to the environment, to better understand the challenges faced by society in this regard.

For further information please refer to our website http://www.wessex.ac.uk/13-conferences/food-and-environment-2013.html.

Post Conference Reports

Post Conference reports are now available for all the 2012 Wessex Institute Conferences at http://www.wessex.ac.uk/12-conferences.html - Find out what happened at the conference or go to http://library.witpress.com and search for the papers presented at the conferences.