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Doctor Benjamin Cerfontaine

Dr Benjamin Cerfontaine

Lecturer in Geotechnical Engineering

Research interests

  • Offshore Geotechnics
  • Infrastructure for Renewable Energy
  • Numerical and Physical Modelling

More research

Accepting applications from PhD students.

Email: b.cerfontaine@soton.ac.uk

Address: Boldrewood Campus, Burgess Road, SO16 7QF (View in Google Maps)

About

I am a geotechnical engineer, specialised in environmental geotechnics and the development of ground-related solutions to foster renewable energy development. I have worked on silent piling technologies or new anchoring solutions for offshore wind turbines or wave energy converters. I have also numerically modelled shallow geothermal energy boreholes and caverns used for pumped-storage hydroelectricity.


My main approach to research is to develop new foundations or geotechnical applications based on the combination of advanced physical and numerical modelling techniques, such as geotechnical centrifuge, finite element or DEM modelling. I particularly enjoy linking observations at different scales, from micro to macro, to base new developments on a fundamental understanding of geomaterials. I am particularly interested in complex loading of soils, for instance induced by the cyclic loading of foundations or rotary installation of piles. 


I particularly enjoy transdisciplinary collaborations, for instance combining anchor geotechnical aspects, fluid dynamics and structural dynamics to simulate an entire floating wind turbine system. I have worked with several companies to develop new anchors for floating devices, embedded in rock or sand.

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