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A 3-Dimensional hysteretic soil-water retention curve

Soil-water retention curve (SWRC) is a fundamental feature of unsaturated soils, indicating how much water is retained within pores and affecting water flow. This paper presents the first realistic SWRC model which is hysteretic and accounts for volume changes. The intellectual challenge related to formulating a robust numerical model, ready for incorporation in any existing numerical code. It was successfully applied in subsequent work quantifying geotechnical risk in unsaturated soil slopes (doi:10.1016/j.compgeo.2012.08.005). It enabled and initiated a new study in collaboration with industry of progressive failure of railway embankments subjected to seasonal suction changes (andrew@geo-observations.com).