Dr Benjamin Cerfontaine PhD
Lecturer in geotechnical engineering
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Benjamin Cerfontaine is a lecturer in geotechnical engineering at the University of Southampton within Engineering and Physical Sciences
Understanding the fundamental behaviour of geomaterials at the micro- and macro-scales is essential to predict the performance of geo-structures. Combining physical and numerical modelling of both scales will lead to a new generation of more reliable and accurate design methods.
He is a geotechnical engineer, specialised in environmental geotechnics and the development of ground-related solutions to foster renewable energy development. He has mainly worked on foundations for offshore wind or wave renewable energy devices, but also on geotechnical aspects of shallow geothermal energy or pumped-storage hydroelectricity.
His main goal is to foster innovative geotechnical solutions (foundation, design methods, probing…) based on an improved understanding of the fundamental behaviour of geomaterials. He is particularly interested in complex loading of soils, for instance induced by the cyclic loading of foundations or rotary installation of piles. His background is a mix of advanced numerical modelling (FEM, DEM) and physical modelling (centrifuge) whose combination enables an insightful understanding of geomaterial and foundation behaviour.
He particularly enjoys transdisciplinary collaborations, for instance combining anchor geotechnical aspects, fluid dynamics and structural dynamics to simulate an entire floating wind turbine system. He has worked with several companies to develop new anchors for floating devices, embedded in rock or sand.
He obtained his PhD at the University of Liège (Belgium) in 2014 and stayed there for a post-doc. He was awarded an EU-funded MSCA individual fellowship and moved to Dundee (UK) in 2017. He joined the University of Southampton in 2020.
