Abstract: Energy and associated environmental costs emerge as primary stressors for a sustainable future. Population and quality of life growth will result in a pronounced increase in energy demand. The geotechnical engineering field plays a vital role in addressing this energy challenge, from minimizing the impact of fossil-based resources to engineering carbon-free energy alternatives. Within this context, this presentation emphasizes the geomechanical and flow behavior of two geo-materials relevant to energy geo-systems. Examples in this lecture will be focused on (1) visco-plasticity of hydrate-bearing sediments and (2) fluid conduction in fractured rocks. I first show how hydrates -ice-like crystalline solids- facilitate creep and promote an isotropic stress state in the subsurface. Then, I combine fracture level studies with fracture-matrix microscale analyses to explore hydro-mechanical behaviors. The various observations in this lecture highlight the importance of coupled processes and the need to advance technological innovations for characterization. Classical assumptions in the geo-fields must be revisited to cover a wider spectrum of scales, processes, and geo-materials.

Bio: Alejandro is currently a Research Associate at The University of Texas at Austin. He received his Ph.D. and M.Sc. from KAUST (Saudi Arabia), and his B.S. from Universidad Nacional de Colombia. He explores the scientific foundations and engineering implications of geomaterials and subsurface processes using multi-scale experimental designs, complemented with numerical simulations and analyses of large data sets.