Flexi Section

The National Geotechnical Centrifuge Facility is an integral part of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Geotechnical Science and Engineering. It includes the University of Western Australia, the University of Newcastle, the University of Wollongong, the University of Queensland, Monash University and the University of Adelaide.

The NGCF is hosted at the Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems at the University of Western Australia.

The NGCF aims at developing state-of-the-art solutions, based on centrifuge modelling, for challenges associated with offshore and onshore geotechnical engineering. The driving force behind the NGCF is Christophe Gaudin whose vision and energy have contributed greatly to making the NGCF what it is today.

BY THE NUMBERS

1989

200

8

$6.5M

OUR MISSION

The mission of the NGCF

 Academic Service
 Serve the academic and industry geotechnical engineering communities nationally and world-wide.
 

 Support Research
 Support research and advance knowledge in soil behaviour and foundation engineering.
 

 Develop Solutions
 Develop and provide solutions for geotechnical design.
 

 Assist in Training
 Assist in the training of the next generation of geotechnical engineers.
 

The NGCF currently operates the only geotechnical centrifuge facility in Australia and runs an impressive three geotechnical centrifuges: a 3.6 m diameter fixed beam centrifuge, a 1.2 m drum centrifuge and a new 10 m diameter centrifuge. This makes the NGCF the only geotechnical modelling facility in the world with three centrifuges operating on a daily basis.

Centrifuges spin reduced-scale geotechnical models to high acceleration levels to replicate the same stresses in soil samples as those found in the field, hence achieving similarity between model and field conditions. As geotechnical behaviour is strongly stress dependent, this is an important similarity to get correct such that meaningful observations and measurements can be made on the centrifuge model. Scaling laws are then used to interpret the centrifuge model results at field scale, such that the centrifuge results can be used as an input in geotechnical design, or to demonstrate geotechnical behaviour and mechanisms that can then be reflected in analytical or numerical approaches.

The centrifuge facility at the NGCF is supported by a team of operators, software, electronic and mechanic engineers and operates on average 275 days a year.

View image

Beam Centrifuge The 3.6m diameter beam centrifuge was manufactured by Actidyn in France and commissioned in 1989. It is a 40 g-tonne centrifuge, able to spin 200 kg at an acceleration of 200 g. The centrifuge can accommodate soil samples up to 1300 mm long and 390 mm wide, representing a soil surface that is up to 260 m by 78 m at 200 g. The beam centrifuge is equipped with state-of-the-art UWA developed data acquisition and motion control systems. Two-dimensional actuators can sit on the soil sample package, enabling a wide range of motion to be applied to the geotechnical model. This motion may be in both load and displacement control and can replicate complex and realistic environmental loading.

DRUM CENTRIFUGE

View image

DRUM CENTRIFUGE Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

C72 BEAM CENTRIFUGE

View image

C72 BEAM CENTRIFUGE Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Our Services

Technology

COFS in-house technical team develops a wide range of equipment suitable for centrifuge and field work. A multi-skilled team with extensive experience in mechatronics, electrical, electronic and software engineering ensures that all aspects of the NGCF operations are supported.

DigiDAQ DigiDAQ is a complete compact data acquisition system designed to meet the needs of today’s centrifuge testing. Versatility and simplicity of the unit allows the system to be used on many different applications, on centrifuges, in the laboratory or in the field. It comprises signal conditioning and A/D conversion in one rugged g-rated water-proof unit with the capability of real time data acquisition on up to 64 channels, and high speed simultaneous capture at up to 1 million samples per second.

PACS The Package Actuator Control System has been developed specifically to meet the complex demands of motion control during centrifuge model testing. It provides the user with the flexibility of connecting most industry standard actuators, servo controlled devices, and analog feedback devices. The software provides the user with four PID Controller channels which can be set up individually in either displacement or force control, and synchronized using a built in waveform and sequence generator.

Soil Characterisation Tools The NGCF designs and manufactures its own soil characterisation tools, including T-bar, cone, ball, piezocone and piezoball penetrometers. This provides researchers with greater flexibility when designing specific centrifuge model tests, and better control of the parameters being measured. Over the last few years, variations of these penetrometers were developed to answer specific modelling challenges.

Model Manufacturing The NCGF manufactures all the models used for centrifuge modelling, using a range of high precision equipment such as a centre lathe, DEM/CNC wire cutting machine and 3D printing. This enables specific features of full-scale geotechnical structures to be replicated in detail, including ‘keying flaps’ on suction embedded plate anchors, internal ring stiffeners on suction caissons or the thin flukes on dynamically installed anchors.

Our Team

Meet our specialists

Prof. Conleth O’Loughlin

Dr. Colm O’Beirne

Prof. Phil Watson

Prof. Britta Bienen

Prof. Christophe Gaudin

Prof. Mark Randolph

Prof. Fraser Bransby

Prof. Muhammad Hossain

Over the last three years, the centrifuge facilities at UWA have been helping more than 80 academics and PhD students in Australia and worldwide in geotechnical research covering a wide range of soil-structure interaction and soil behaviour issues.

The NGCF has been established to continue this success story, and to create a foothold for centrifuge modelling in addressing the next generation of challenges facing onshore and offshore geotechnical engineering.