Goals of the Symposium

- Research and developments in advanced laboratory geotechnical testing, including apparatus, techniques, data acquisition and interpretation.
- Applications of advanced laboratory and field testing to integrated site characterization and ground modelling.
- Demonstrating the value of practical engineering applications. This involves reporting collaborative studies on laboratory and field testing, sampling, theoretical and numerical analysis, project engineering and full scale observation.

Themes

I. Experimental Investigations from very small strains to beyond failure

1) Advances in laboratory and field methods
2) Data interpretation and geotechnical imaging
3) Multi scale problems in geomechanics (micro-to-macro strain)
4) Advanced sampling
5) Behaviour at geotechnical interfaces

II. Behaviour, characterisation and modelling of various geomaterials

6) Physical and numerical modeling
7) Anisotropy and localization
8) Time dependent responses (ageing, viscous and cycling effects)
9) Special characteristics of particular geomaterials:
    - Unsaturated soils,
    - Cemented andstabilized soils,
    - Frozen soilsincluding hydrates,
    - Mixtures (soilswith inclusions)

III. Practical prediction and interpretation of ground response: field observation and case histories

10) Integrated site characterization
11) Performance evaluation of geotechnical structures
12) New field methods of ground deformation measurement