Plasticity And Geomechanics

This page intentionally left blank PLASTICITY AND GEOMECHANICS Plasticity theory is widely used to describe the behaviour of soil and rock in many engineering situations. Plasticity and Geomechanics presents a concise introduction to the general subject of plasticity with a particular emphasis on applications in geomechanics. Metal plasticity is described and elementary theories are discussed before attention is focused specifically on geomaterials. The greater part of the book is devoted to the classical aspects of plasticity, particularly the use of upper and lower bound theorems and slip line theory. Critical state theory is introduced and Cam Clay is described in detail. Derived from the authors’ own lecture notes, this book is written with students firmly in mind; the main body of the work is concerned with applications, while the more theoretical aspects such as proofs of theorems are placed in appendices. Excessive use of mathematical methods is avoided in the main body of the text and, where possible, physical interpretations are given for important concepts. In this way the authors present a clear introduction to the complex ideas and concepts of plasticity as well as demonstrating how this developing subject is of critical importance to geomechanics and geotechnical engineering. Although entirely self-contained, this book constitutes a companion volume to the acclaimed Elasticity and Geomechanics by the same authors, and will appeal to students and researchers in the fields of civil, mechanical, material and geological engineering. It may be used as a text for senior-level undergraduate and graduate courses in soil mechanics, foundation engineering and geomechanics. r. o. davis is Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Canterbury. a. p. s. selvadurai is Professor of Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics at McGill University. Both authors are dedicated educators and researchers in the fields of geotechnical engineering and geomechanics with a combined experience exceeding 50 years. They are joint authors of the well-received Elasticity and Geomechanics published in 1996 by Cambridge University Press, and Professor Selvadurai is also the author of the two-volume monograph Partial Differential Equations in Mechanics (2000). PLASTICITY AND GEOMECHANICS R. O. DAVIS A. P. S. SELVADURAI University of Canterbury McGill University    Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge  , United Kingdom Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521818308 © R. O. Davis & A. P. S. Selvadurai 2002 This book is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provision of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published in print format 2002 - isbn-13 978-0-511-06981-9 eBook (EBL) - isbn-10 0-511-06981-2 eBook (EBL) - isbn-13 978-0-521-81830-8 hardback - isbn-10 0-521-81830-3 hardback Cambridge University Press ha