The influence of spatially varying boundary conditions based on material heterogeneity

Ricketts, Evan John ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8056-070X, Cleall, Peter John ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4005-5319, Jefferson, Anthony ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2050-2521, Kerfriden, Pierre ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7749-3996 and Lyons, Paul 2024. The influence of spatially varying boundary conditions based on material heterogeneity. European Journal of Computational Mechanics 33 (03) , pp. 199-226. 10.13052/ejcm2642-2085.3331 Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

When conducting numerical analyses, boundary conditions are generally applied homogeneously, neglecting the inherent heterogeneity of the material being represented. Whilst the heterogeneity is often considered within the medium, its influence on the response at the boundary should also be accounted for. In this study, A novel approach to applying heterogeneous boundary conditions in the simulation of physical systems is presented, particularly focusing on moisture transport in unsaturated soils. The proposed method divides the surface into blocks or “macro-elements” and scales the boundary conditions based on the variation of material properties within these blocks. The principle of using overlapping kernel functions allows local effects to be considered, impacting neighbouring regions. To demonstrate the efficacy of the approach, a set of analyses were conducted that considered infiltration into a body of unsaturated soil, with various configurations of material properties and boundary conditions. The numerical simulations indicate that the application of scaled boundary conditions leads to a more natural and realistic response in the system. The applied method is independent on the numerical techniques employed in the simulation process, making it adaptable to existing computational codes, offering flexibility in capturing complex behaviours, and providing insights into how heterogeneity influences the system’s overall response.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	Published
Schools:	Engineering
Publisher:	River Publishers
ISSN:	1779-7179
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	29 April 2024
Date of Acceptance:	25 April 2024
Last Modified:	08 Nov 2024 18:30
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/168481

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