Thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling in clay barriers

A thermo-hydro-mechanical model is presented to tackle the complex coupling problems encountered in clay barriers. A detailed formulation coupling heat, moisture (liquid water and water vapour) and air transfer in a deformable unsaturated soil is given. The formulation of Alonso–Gensʹ mechanical model for unsaturated soil is also incorporated. Finally, a small-scale wetting–heating test on compacted bentonite is performed for validation; the numerical results are compared to the experimental measurements.