The field of geoengineering is at a crossroads where the path to high-tech solutions meets the path to expanding applications of geotechnology. In this report, the term "geoengineering" includes all types of engineering that deal with Earth materials, such as geotechnical engineering, geological engineering, hydrological engineering, and Earth-related parts of petroleum engineering and mining engineering. The rapid expansion of nanotechnology, biotechnology, and information technology begs the question of how these new approaches might come to play in developing better solutions for geotechnological problems. This report presents a vision for the future of geotechnology aimed at National Science Foundation (NSF) program managers, the geological and geotechnical engineering community as a whole, and other interested parties, including Congress, federal and state agencies, industry, academia, and other stakeholders in geoengineering research. Some of the ideas may be close to reality whereas others may turn out to be elusive, but they all present possibilities to strive for and potential goals for the future. Geoengineers are poised to expand their roles and lead in finding solutions for modern Earth systems problems, such as global change, emissions-free energy supply, global water supply, and urban systems.

The geology of the Japanese Islands is enormously complicated because of the active tectonism that has taken place on the boundary between the Pacific and Eurasian plates. Geological formations there are intricately deformed and displaced by many active faults. Hence, in planning for and siting large construction projects, such as nuclear power stations, underground power stations, and the underground facility for High-Level Radioactive Waste (HLW), more detailed investigations are necessary than in more stable parts of the world. Only then can assessments be made as to the long-term stability, hydrological characteristics and mechanical characteristics of geological conditions.This book offers recent research studies in engineering geology in Japan. It contains 27 papers of scope and importance sufficient to allow engineering geologists throughout the world to understand more of the present state of research and study in Japan.The title also includes a number of current topics in which Japanese engineering geologists have participated: the planning for and siting of large construction, such as nuclear power stations, underground power stations, and the underground facility for High-Level Radioactive Waste (HLW); the construction project of highways and nuclear power stations and new energy developments such as those for geothermal energy; the countermeasures for natural hazards caused by earthquakes, landslides, and slope, and stone deterioration; and alteration because of weathering at and near the Earth's surface.

In November 2015, Buenos Aires, Argentina became the location of several important events for geo-professionals, with the simultaneous holding of the 15th Pan-American Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (XV PCSMGE), the 8th South American Congress on Rock Mechanics (SCRM) and the 6th International Symposium on Deformation Characteristics of Geomaterials, as well as the 22nd Argentinean Congress of Geotechnical Engineering (CAMSIGXXII). This synergy brought together international experts, researchers, academics, professionals and geo-engineering companies in a unique opportunity to exchange ideas and discuss current and future practices in the areas of soil mechanics and rock mechanics, and their applications in civil, energy, environmental, and mining engineering. This book presents the invited lectures of the 15th Pan-American Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (XV PCSMGE) and the 8th South American Congress on Rock Mechanics (SCRM). It includes the Casagrande Lecture delivered by Luis Valenzuela and 21 Plenary, Keynote and Panelist Lectures from these two Buenos Aires conferences.

This book highlights the recent research works on sustainable construction, people behavior and built environment which were presented virtually during the 2021 AUA and ICSGS Academic Conference, Global Strategies for a Resilient and Sustainable Post Pandemic World Towards a Better Future for All which was conducted on 26-27 October 2021.

Reliability-based design is the only engineering methodology currently available which can ensure self-consistency in both physical and probabilistic terms. It is also uniquely compatible with the theoretical basis underlying other disciplines such as structural design. It is especially relevant as geotechnical design becomes subject to increasing codification and to code harmonization across national boundaries and material types. Already some codes of practice describe the principles and requirements for safety, serviceability, and durability of structures in reliability terms. This book presents practical computational methods in concrete steps that can be followed by practitioners and students. It also provides geotechnical examples illustrating reliability analysis and design. It aims to encourage geotechnical engineers to apply reliability-based design in a realistic context that recognises the complex variabilities in geomaterials and model uncertainties arising from a profession steeped in empiricism. By focusing on learning through computations and examples, this book serves as a valuable reference for engineers and a resource for students.

This single-volume thoroughly summarizes advances in the past several decades and emerging challenges in fundamental research in geotechnical engineering. These fundamental research frontiers are critically reviewed and described in details in lights of four grand challenges our society faces: climate adaptation, urban sustainability, energy and material resources, and global water resources. The specific areas critically reviewed, carefully examined, and envisioned are: sensing and measurement, soil properties and their physics roots, multiscale and multiphysics processes in soil, geochemical processes for resilient and sustainable geosystems, biological processes in geotechnics, unsaturated soil mechanics, coupled flow processes in soil, thermal processes in geotechnical engineering, and rock mechanics in the 21st century.

Uncertainty, Modeling, and Decision Making in Geotechnics shows how uncertainty quantification and numerical modeling can complement each other to enhance decision-making in geotechnical practice, filling a critical gap in guiding practitioners to address uncertainties directly. The book helps practitioners acquire a working knowledge of geotechnical risk and reliability methods and guides them to use these methods wisely in conjunction with data and numerical modeling. In particular, it provides guidance on the selection of realistic statistics and a cost-effective, accessible method to address different design objectives, and for different problem settings, and illustrates the value of this to decision-making using realistic examples. Bringing together statistical characterization, reliability analysis, reliability-based design, probabilistic inverse analysis, and physical insights drawn from case studies, this reference guide from an international team of experts offers an excellent resource for state-of-the-practice uncertainty-informed geotechnical design for specialist practitioners and the research community.

For thousands of years, the underground has provided humans refuge, useful resources, physical support for surface structures, and a place for spiritual or artistic expression. More recently, many urban services have been placed underground. Over this time, humans have rarely considered how underground space can contribute to or be engineered to maximize its contribution to the sustainability of society. As human activities begin to change the planet and population struggle to maintain satisfactory standards of living, placing new infrastructure and related facilities underground may be the most successful way to encourage or support the redirection of urban development into sustainable patterns. Well maintained, resilient, and adequately performing underground infrastructure, therefore, becomes an essential part of sustainability, but much remains to be learned about improving the sustainability of underground infrastructure itself. At the request of the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Research Council (NRC) conducted a study to consider sustainable underground development in the urban environment, to identify research needed to maximize opportunities for using underground space, and to enhance understanding among the public and technical communities of the role of underground engineering in urban sustainability. Underground Engineering for Sustainable Urban Development explains the findings of researchers and practitioners with expertise in geotechnical engineering, underground design and construction, trenchless technologies, risk assessment, visualization techniques for geotechnical applications, sustainable infrastructure development, life cycle assessment, infrastructure policy and planning, and fire prevention, safety and ventilation in the underground. This report is intended to inform a future research track and will be of interest to a broad audience including those in the private and public sectors engaged in urban and facility planning and design, underground construction, and safety and security.

Risk, Reliability and Sustainable Remediation in the Field of Civil and Environmental Engineering illustrates the concepts of risk, reliability analysis, its estimation, and the decisions leading to sustainable development in the field of civil and environmental engineering. The book provides key ideas on risks in performance failure and structural failures of all processes involved in civil and environmental systems, evaluates reliability, and discusses the implications of measurable indicators of sustainability in important aspects of multitude of civil engineering projects. It will help practitioners become familiar with tolerances in design parameters, uncertainties in the environment, and applications in civil and environmental systems. Furthermore, the book emphasizes the importance of risks involved in design and planning stages and covers reliability techniques to discover and remove the potential failures to achieve a sustainable development. - Contains relevant theory and practice related to risk, reliability and sustainability in the field of civil and environment engineering - Gives firsthand experience of new tools to integrate existing artificial intelligence models with large information obtained from different sources - Provides engineering solutions that have a positive impact on sustainability

A recent initiative within the civil engineering field is the use of nanotechnology and materials within the construction industry. While there has been great success in the adoption of various nanomaterials, there is still room for development and improvement. Advanced Research on Nanotechnology for Civil Engineering Applications highlights emergent research and theoretical concepts in the implementation of nanotechnology within the construction, geotechnical, and transportation engineering fields. Examining the application of nanomaterials, current trends within the topic area, and the potential health impacts of material usage on the environment, this book is a pivotal reference for professionals, engineers, students, and researchers.