An effective stress based numerical model for hydro-mechanical analysis in unsaturated porous media

A fully coupled flow-deformation model is presented for the behaviour of unsaturated porous media. The governing equations are derived based on the equations of equilibrium, effective stress concept, Darcy's law, Henry's law, and the conservation of fluid mass. Macroscopic coupling between the flow and deformation fields is established through the effective stress parameters. The microscopic link between the volumetric deformations of the two pore system (i.e. the pore-air and the pore-water) is established using Betti's reciprocal theorem. Both links are essential for a proper modelling of flow and deformation in unsaturated porous media. The discretised form of the governing equations is obtained using the finite element technique. As application of the model, experimental results from several laboratory tests reported in the literature are modelled numerically. Good agreement is obtained between the numerical and the experimental results in all cases.