Streamlined workflow for the simulation of submarine landslides with the material point method

Resumo

Industry demand for numerical simulations is growing every year due to the advances in computer hardware that make increasingly complex and detailed simulations possible. Numerical tools are particularly useful for situations in which the available analytical and experimental tools are limited or unavailable. For that reason, they are a powerful tool for the analysis of natural phenomena, such as submarine landslides. Submarine landslides are commonly accompanied by large deformations and large displacements, which makes them challenging for traditional numerical tools, such as the finite element method. Thus, a numerical tool which is equipped to handle this behavior is necessary. In this paper, we describe a streamlined workflow to simulate submarine landslides that encompass problem modeling, simulation and post-processing. The simulator, developed in-house, uses the Generalized Interpolation Material Point (GIMP) to solve momentum conservation equations and is able to handle large deformations, contact and physical nonlinearities. The proposed workflow acts as a wizard that creates templates for multiple problem definition strategies, automates simulation execution, and provides a range of postprocessing variables to better describe the results. Furthermore, practical examples are presented, detailing the process of mesh and particle definition, simulation execution and analysis of run out distances, deposition height and impact pressure assessment.