Brinkgreve, R.

Profile

Ronald Brinkgreve is part-time Associate Professor at Delft University of Technology. There is perfect synergy with his other position as Manager of the Competence Centre Geo-Engineering at Plaxis BV in Delft.  The common ground is the research on constitutive models and numerical methods for geo-engineering applications.

At TUDelft, Ronald is responsible for the course “Behaviour of Soils and Rocks”, which is part of the core of the Geo-engineering MSc programme. Ronald is also involved as a supervisor and committee member in several MSc graduation projects, mainly dealing with numerical modelling and simulation of soil behaviour and soil-structure interaction. Besides the educational tasks, Ronald does research on (automated) soil and model parameter determination and he contributes to on-going research projects at the Geo-engineering section.

Ronald graduated in 1989 from Delft University of Technology with an MSc degree in Civil Engineering (specialized in Geomechanics) and obtained his PhD degree from this university in 1994 on the thesis “Geomaterial Models and Numerical Analysis of Softening”. 

Expertise

Ronald is specialised in Numerical Methods and Constitutive Models for soils and rock. His expertise includes the proper use of the Finite Element Method for geo-engineering applications. Constitutive models are the key components describing the non-linear behaviour of soils and rocks. The robust implementation of such models in a finite element framework is one of the key success factors for a successful analysis. However, regardless of the implementation, it is the user of the models who selects the model parameters and decides on the numerical methods being used. This requires a thorough understanding of the possibilities and limitations of the models and the methods.

Ronald is the author of the NAFEMS publication “Validating numerical modelling in geotechnical engineering”. This book describes the do’s and don’ts of finite element modelling and how to validate the model and the results.  

Courses

The course “Behaviour of Soils and Rocks” deals with the formulation and parameter determination of constitutive models for geo-engineering applications in soil and rock. The course involves lectures and exercises to ‘play’ with the models in order to get a sense of the particular model response under various stress and strain conditions. Understanding the possibilities and limitations of the models is also a key success factor for a proper use of the models in practical applications.

In addition to the soil modelling course, Ronald is responsible for the course CIE4780 Trending Topics in Geo-Engineering. He also contributes as a guest lecturer to some other Geo-engineering courses.

Projects

• Participation in expert team “Baanstabiliteit” ProRail on improvement of calculation methods and regulations for existing railway embankments.
• Participation in several small projects as an expert on soil constitutive models and numerical methods.