Time-harmonic response of transversely isotropic and layered poroelastic half-spaces under general buried loads

Abstract

A semi-analytical method is developed for solving the dynamic response of transversely isotropic, multilayered, and poroelastic half-spaces with different surface hydraulic conditions and subjected to time-harmonic vertical and horizontal loads buried in the layered half-space. The coupled governing equations of motion are presented in details in terms of the Biot's poroelastodynamic theory via the (u,p) formulation. The cylindrical system of vector functions is introduced to express the unknown primary quantities so that the coupled governing partial differential equations can be reduced and separated into two sets of first-order ordinary differential equations (i.e., the LM- and N-types). A recursive relation for the expansion coefficients among different layers is established by virtue of the stable and efficient dual variable and position method. Making use of the boundary and interface conditions, the fundamental solutions are obtained in terms of the vector-function system. The corresponding physical-domain solutions are then derived via an accurate semi-infinite integral algorithm. The developed fundamental solutions are carefully checked with existing solutions, and numerical examples are further presented to demonstrate the effect of material anisotropy, loading depth, material layering, and surface hydraulic condition on the dynamic response, which should be useful to design engineers. These solutions could be further served as benchmarks for future numerical methods.