Implicit-explicit schemes for nonlinear consolidation

A general analytical procedure capable of performing linear and nonlinear consolidation analysis of saturated porous media is proposed. A brief review of the coupled field equations is included and the constitutive assumptions are stated explicitly. Time integration of the resulting nonlinear semidiscrete finite element equations is performed by using an implicit/explicit predictor/multicorrector scheme developed by Hughes and co-workers. It is shown that the algorithm can be simply and concisely implemented. The technique allows for a convenient selection of implicit and explicit elements, and for a convenient implicit-explicit split of the various operators appearing in the equations. The procedure proves to be extremely effective in dealing with consolidation problems. Numerical results which demonstrate the versatility and accuracy of the proposed procedures are presented.