How to induce the permeability random fields into Geostudio SEEP/W

FengdongChi

Many people have already induced the random fields into Geostudio. This is the method:

1)Build a computational model. 

SEEP/W module in geotechnical analysis software GEOSTUDIO was used to establish the finite element model. This part includes the steps:  build the model, mesh the structure, define the material properties, apply boundary conditions, etc. We have to pay attention to the consistency between the mesh size and the conditional simulation mesh size. The number of material attributes should be determined according to the demand precision when defining uncertain materials as the basis for assigning values. Finally, the model file is saved as XML.file.

2) Create a new input calculation file.

We use MATLAB to generate n sets of permeability random field data and correspond the element number in the finite element model with the element number of the random field model.

Replace the codes related to the permeability of the homogeneous earth dam model in the XML.file in step (1) with the codes about the random field data.

In this way, the random field assignment of the finite element calculation model is realized, and new XML files are obtained.

I have already generated stationary unconditional random fields in MATLAB. And I corresponded the element number in the finite element model with the element number of the random field model.

At present, the problem is how to modify the codes in Geosudio. For example, we can use code like: prop por=xxx k11=xxx i xxx j xxx to change the permeability's value of each element.

Can you support me the codes about the value of permeability, and the code may be similar to the code of FLAC?

DongmingZheng

I have a similar question. But to my best knowledge so far, the *.GSZ files cannot be edited like input files in FLAC/FLAC3D. It is suggested for Geostudio to make such changes in future.

KathrynDompierre

FengdongChi: Several studies have integrated non-Gaussian random fields into our software (Jiang et al., 2014; Jiang et al., 2015; Li et al. 2015). Most, if not all these studies, use older versions of the software in which the mesh was stored in a readily accessible .XML file. This is no longer the case. The mesh is now stored in a .PLY file (in binary format). Although the file can be parsed, the process can be complicated and require a significant amount of time (not to mention that the file format may change with time). Once this stated, it should be noted that an Add-In can be used to read in non-Gaussian random fields, which can then be applied to the Gauss points (but not to the elements). You will find more information on this topic in our Add-In Software Development Kit.

DongmingZheng: GeoStudio input and output files are generally saved in a .GSZ file (a zipped file that can be opened with any ZIP utility). They can also be saved in an uncompressed format in a separate and empty folder. This can be done by opening the File Save As dialog box and setting the Save As type equal to GeoStudio Uncompressed File (.XML). In so doing, the files become readily accessible in File Explorer. The editable .XML file contains the geometry, material properties, boundary conditions, and much more. The analyses in the .XML (or .GSZ) file can be solved using the GeoCmd application, which can be launched from a command line prompt. Once the analyses are solved, the GeoCmd application can be used to generate reports (.HTML files) from which several model outputs can be extracted. All of this can be simplified by creating a batch (.BAT) file that contains all the commands. Further information pertaining to the GeoCmd application can be found in the following tutorial video. The output files have .CSV extensions. The data found in a graph is stored in a specific .CSV file. The name of the file is appended with a cache identifier (the first number) and a cache sequence number (the second number). The cache numbers associated with each graph can be found in the .XML file. The first number always remains unchanged whereas the second number changes each time the graph is changed/altered. It is thus recommended that the graphs be defined in advance (and not changed) when used in calibration, sensitivity, or uncertainty analyses. The nodal values of the independent variable (temperature in the case of a heat transfer analysis) are also stored in specific .CSV files (one node.csv file for each saved time step). The nodal coordinates can be found in the View Result Information dialog box. All of this to say that the input/output data can be manipulated, and the analyses solved from within any third-party software and/or code script file.