COLLABORATION IN BASIC SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (COBASE)

Robert Gilbert hosted Tamaz Vashakmadze of Tbilisi State University for a COBASE Long-Term visit from May through October 1999. Their collaborative efforts built upon Gilbert’s work on poroelasticity and elastic plate theory and Vashakmadze’s expertise in anisotropic plate theory and anisotropic and nonlinear elasticity. This work has already resulted in a substantial paper on a two-dimensional nonlinear theory of anisotropic plates, which is to be published in Mathematical and Computer Modelling. While their original goal in investigating poroelasticity was to develop models for the seabed, their research unexpectedly led to interesting potential applications in the areas of medical tomography and land mine detection. They have also formulated some equations for a nonlinear Biot model for poroelasticity, and this work will form the basis for a joint proposal to the Multidisciplinary Research Program of the Defense Department’s University Research Initiative. Gilbert and his Georgian colleague foresee substantial progress in their ongoing research on the mechanics of porous media, with the anticipated results possibly having an impact in the fields of geophysics, geomechanics, energy exploration, composite manufacturing, earthquake engineering, biomechanics, and many other areas.