Numerical analysis of LEAP centrifuge tests using a practice-based approach

The Liquefaction Experiment and Analysis Project (LEAP) George Washington University (GWU) 2015 consisted of a group of centrifuge facilities' duplications of one liquefaction lateral spreading experiment that was also numerically analyzed by a series of predictors. The author was one of the LEAP predictors, and in this paper, the prediction exercises conducted by this author as part of LEAP GWU 2015 are summarized. For the initial prediction, the author analyzed the centrifuge tests using an approach similar to that used in dam engineering practice for embankment dams. For subsequent predictions, the author made improvements to the analysis by refining both the constitutive model calibration and the numerical analysis procedures. Following the completion of the LEAP GWU 2015 predictions, additional analyses were completed with further refinements after the author received useful feedback from a reviewer of this paper and held discussions with other experts in the field. The process and results from this new set of analyses were seen as an important complement to those completed during the LEAP GWU 2015 predictions and are also included in this paper.