Research visit to CIMNE

From March to April 2026, MOTRAN project member Dr. Tao Hu from Prof. Wei Wu’s research group at BOKU University carried out an academic visit to the International Centre for Numerical Methods in Engineering (CIMNE) in Barcelona, where he was hosted by Prof. Alessandro Franci.

During the visit, Dr. Hu presented his recent research on neural network-based constitutive modelling and hypoplastic modelling of granular materials exhibiting solid- and fluid-like behaviour. The latter focused on transient granular flows, where materials may undergo transitions from friction-dominated to collision-dominated regimes, as encountered in problems such as landslides and debris flows. Discussions also addressed the numerical implementation of such constitutive models and their ability to reproduce phenomena including dilatancy, liquefaction and Bagnold-type flow.

The exchange further included presentations and discussions on the Particle Finite Element Method (PFEM), machine-learning-based multiscale modelling, and data-driven constitutive approaches. The visit provided an opportunity to exchange ideas on advanced numerical methods for large-deformation geomechanical problems and to further develop collaboration between BOKU and CIMNE.

Source: LOC3G visit report