Projects

Selected projects

Redefining Landslide Dynamics: Landslide-Driven Divide Migration and Carbon Sequestration

The project aims to investigate landslides as dynamic agents of landscape evolution, focusing on drainage reorganization, thermal stress-induced instability, sediment pulse impacts, and carbon sequestration via integrative remote sensing, numerical modeling, and geochemical analysis.

Principal investigator: Sumit Das
Period: 01.01.2026 – 31.12.2030 (5 years)
Amount: ~ 1 million EUR
Funder: Czech Science Foundation
Project ID: GA26-23430M

Patterns and trends of rock slope instability explained with thermal forcing in temperate climate

Rocks slopes are subjected to diurnal, seasonal and long-term temperature fluctuations, which result in a certain rate of rock wear, weathering, and instability phenomena. Changes in climate patterns enhance temperature fluctuations, with an impact on geomechanical properties which, in turn, control the stability of rock slopes. We propose an integrated approach to evaluate and account for temperature effects in laboratory tests, long-term monitoring of rock masses, field experiments, and advanced data-driven spatio-temporal modelling. By uncovering knowledge of thermo-mechanical rock behaviour and its larger scale implications, we will contribute to improving landslide hazard assessments, ultimately supporting climate change adaptation.

Principal investigator: Jan Blahůt
Co-investigator: Gianvito Scaringi
Period: 01.01.2025 – 31.12.2027 (3 years)
Amount: ~320,000 EUR
Funder: Czech Science Foundation
Project ID: GA25-17664S (link)

Conceptualisation and modelling of thermal energy storage for hybrid district heating and cooling systems in the Czech Republic

Our objective is to enhance the understanding of the hydro-mechanical response of clay soils to thermal loading by benefiting from state-of-the-art experimental devices and improvements to a modelling framework for clay soils to account for cyclic thermal loading and time-dependent effects under varying thermal conditions. We will study the feasibility of integrating underground thermal energy storage systems with renewable energy sources in Czechia. Finally, we will produce a well-constrained, realistic modelling example of such an integrated system, which will serve as a basis for future applied research.

Principal investigator: Gianvito Scaringi
Period: 01.09.2024 – 31.08.2026 (2 years)
Amount: ~290,000 EUR
Funder: Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport of the Czech Republic
Project ID: LUC24143 (link)

Landslides in a changing climate: the influence of temperature on susceptibility and hazard in temperate climates

Climate change is altering the frequency and distribution of landslides in many regions, owing to complex mechanisms. Current studies mainly focus on the role of altered precipitation patterns and extremes, while there is little attention on the direct effects of warming, rapid temperature changes, and heatwaves on the ground’s mechanical response. We hypothesise that temperature exerts a measurable influence on slope stability and its spatiotemporal patterns. We will conduct regional assessments, backed by field studies and lab experiments. Our work will contribute to improving landslide susceptibility/hazard assessments in a changing climate by explicitly accounting for direct thermal effects.

Principal investigator: Gianvito Scaringi
Co-investigator: Jan Klimeš
Period: 01.01.2024 – 31.12.2026 (3 years)
Amount: ~350,000 EUR
Funder: Czech Science Foundation
Project ID: GA24-12316S (link)

Thermally-induced instability of slopes under climate change

In this project, we will explore key aspects of temperature-dependent behaviours in clay soils. We will work at multiple scales: advanced laboratory experiments on various soils under various thermal, hydraulic and mechanical conditions; development of a novel model for slope stability accounting for temperature; evaluation of regional-scale slope instability patterns in relation to temperature. Finally, we will propose a conceptual framework to evaluate whether observed changes in large-scale patterns can be explained by temperature-dependent processes observed at small scale.

Principal investigator: Gianvito Scaringi
Period: 01.09.2023 – 31.08.2025 (2 years)
Amount: ~0.5 million EUR
Funder: Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport of the Czech Republic
Project ID: LL2316 (link)

Effects of thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling on slope deformation in expansive clays: advanced experiments and hypoplastic modelling

The complexity of the physico-mechanical processes in expansive clays is such that coupled models are needed to explain their behaviour under variable hydraulic, mechanic, and thermal conditions. The effects of temperature changes on the behaviour of bentonite are being studied, in particular, with respect to their role in the hydraulic insulation of radioactive waste. Results demonstrate that thermal effects can be significant. These effects can also occur due to different processes, such as seasonal thermal variations in shallow soil layers along mountain slopes. The llimited research in this field has shown that some landslides might be activated by thermal excursions. In this project, an existing constitutive model for expansive clays will be improved to better account for the thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling, compression and shear experiments will be conducted under controlled temperature conditions, and the role of thermal variations will be assessed in slope stability problems through numerical modelling.

Principal investigator: Gianvito Scaringi
Period: 01.01.2020 – 31.12.2022 (3 years)
Amount: ~185,000 EUR
Funder: Czech Science Foundation
Project ID: GJ20-28853Y (link)