Lectures will cover topics within:
- the Finite Element Method (15 h)
- constitutive modeling of geomaterials (8 h)
- seepage and consolidation (10 h)
- other numerical methods of interest in Geomechanics, e.g. BEM, DEM, FDEM (10 h)
- case studies of engineering problems solved thanks to the use of different numerical methods, e.g. the design of tunnels in urban environment, tunnels in squeezing and/or swelling conditions, slope stability problems, construction of retaining walls, etc. (20 h)

The course will include 17 hours of application classes where students will be asked to work on a real project and take advantage of the knowledge on numerical methods gained during lectures to solve the engineering problem proposed (e.g. the design of a tunnel lining). Students will be asked to prepare a written report from their work.

Reading material will be made available to students during lectures.
Additional reading material is:
- Elementi di meccanica e ingegneria delle rocce by Marco Barla, Celid 2010
- Finite element analysis in geotechnical engineering – theory by David M Potts & Lidija Zdravkovic, Thomas Telford 1999
- Geotechnical modeling by David Muir Wood, Spon Press 2004
- The Finite Element Method: its basis and fundamentals (7th edition) by O. C. Zienkiewicz, R. L. Taylor, J.Z. Zhu Elsevier 2013

Students will have to pass a written and an oral examination. The final mark will be given on the basis of the result of the two exams and the mark received for the report produced during the application classes.