Numerical Modeling of the Response of Rockfall Barriers Under Combined Static-Dynamic Loading. (Numerical modeling of the response of rockfall flexible barriers under static-dynamic combined loading)

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INRAE presentation

The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.

Work environment, missions and activities

You will join the ECRINS team at UMR IGE, whose activities focus in particular on protection against gravitational phenomena specific to mountainous areas.
You will report to S. Lambert and will interact frequently with M.A. Chanut of Cerema (Bron). You will also be expected to present your work and discuss your results with the relevant working group of the C2ROP2 National Program, which is helping to fund this position.
The research project to which this position contributes concerns rockfall protection nets, which are installed on slopes to intercept falling rocks before they reach vulnerable areas (roads, homes, etc.). These flexible structures consist of various metal components: posts, cables, nets, and energy dissipators. Their spatio-temporal response to localized impacts is extremely complex, with strong dependencies on the structure’s characteristics and loading conditions. It is also modified by the presence of material deposits—such as those from scree—which induce a static load at the base of the structure.

Your primary task will be to study the response of rockfall protection screens when subjected to static loads combined with dynamic impact loads, considering static loads of varying amplitude and spatial distribution. Two different types of screens will be examined. You will use the Generock discrete-element code, developed and calibrated by Cerema, to model the mechanical response of these structures.

 Specifically, you will be responsible for:

-    Adapting the code to account for static loads
-    Validating the model using data from impact tests on full-scale structures
-    Conducting a parametric study considering different static loads
-    Analyzing the results obtained based on functional and structural criteria (force transmitted through the various elements, energy dissipation, etc.)
-    Defining acceptability thresholds for static loads
-    Drafting an article for submission to a scientific journal
 

 

Training and skills

• Recommended Education: Ph.D. or, alternatively, an engineering degree with a focus on solid mechanics or computational mechanics.
• Desired knowledge: Solid mechanics; numerical modeling
• Preferred experience: C++ programming
• Desired skills: Ability to work independently and take initiative; analytical skills and the ability to synthesize information; strong interest in numerical modeling; writing skills; fluency in French is preferred.

INRAE's life quality

By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):

- up to 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.

How to apply

I send my CV and my motivation letter