ISRM Newsletter No. 57 - March 2022
- lnvitation to the ISRM 2022 International Symposium – LARMS IX, Asunción, Paraguay, 16-19 October 2022
- 37th ISRM online lecture by Prof. Yuzo Onishi
- Volume 24 - 2021 of the ISRM News Journal is online
- ISRM launched a survey in English, Spanish and Chinese
- Prof. E.T. Brown elected as an International Member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering
- Prof. Álvaro González García passed away
- New ISRM course on Course on Crustal Stress Assessment and its Application in Engineering and Earthquake Engineering
- Eurock2022, Helsinki, Finland, 12-15 September
- 15th International ISRM Congress, Salzburg, Austria – Call for Abstracts
- AusRock 2022, Melbourne, 9 November-1 December
- ISRM Young Members’ Seminar Series
- 5th Symposium of the Macedonian Association for Geotechnics, Ohrid, 23-25 June
- RocDyn-4, Xuzhou, China, 17-19 August 2022
- 9th Brazilian Rock Mechanics Symposium, 23-26 August 2022, Campinas, Brazil
- CouFrac 2022, 14-16 November, Berkeley, California, USA
- Renew your access to the ISRM Digital Library
- ISRM Rocha Medal 2024 - nominations to be received by 31 December 2022
- ISRM Sponsored Conferences
lnvitation to the ISRM 2022 International Symposium – LARMS IX, Asunción, Paraguay, 16-19 October 2022
It is with great pleasure and honor that we extend to you a warm invitation to attend the 2022 9th Latin American Rock Mechanics Symposium (LARMS IX), an International Society of Rock Mechanics International Symposium which will be held in Asunción, Paraguay, from October 16-19, 2022!
The theme for LARMS IX is “Challenges in rock mechanics: towards a sustainable development of infrastructure”. This event will provide a unique opportunity for meeting international experts from around the world and exchanging new ideas and exploring the future directions in the fields of rock mechanics, rock engineering, and geological engineering. Confirmed keynote speakers are Antonio Bobet, Doug Stead, Ismet Canbulat, Nick Barton and Xia-Ting Feng. The symposium will be preceded by two days of short courses and workshops, includes industrial exhibitions, and post conference technical tours. Attractive programs will be provided for young researchers and students, including the student night, poster and paper competitions for students and young researchers/professionals.
Registration at promotional price will end on 15 May 2022.
Visit the conmference website for complete details.
Visit Paraguay and participate in this great event!
José Pavón
Chairman of the Organizing Committee of LARMS IX
ISRM Vice President for Latin America
37th ISRM online lecture by Prof. Yuzo Onishi
For the 37th ISRM Online Lecture, the ISRM invited Prof. Yuzo Ohnishi, from Japan. The title of the lecture is “Evolution of numerical methods for coupled problems in rock mechanics and engineering”. It was broadcast on 24 March 2022 and will remain available on the online lectures dedicated webpage.
Prof. Yuzo Ohnishi is an Emeritus Professor at Kyoto University. He received his Bachelor Degree in Civil Engineering in 1968 from Kyoto University and his PhD in 1973 from the University of California at Berkeley, USA with supervision by Prof. R.E. Goodman. After he worked as a staff member at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, he returned to Kyoto University. During his 39 years’ career in Kyoto University he was Assistant Professor, Associate Professor and Professor of Geotechnical Engineering in the Department of Civil Engineering. In the meantime, he conducted his research at the Geological Engineering Laboratory in the Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT from 1987 to 1988.
His research interests include mechanical properties of soils and rock masses, continuous and discontinuous numerical analysis such as FEM, DEM and DDA, and groundwater modeling. His major contribution to rock engineering has been in the area of coupled analysis between various influencing factors for discontinuous rock masses. Now the coupling between solid rock and water has been extended to a wider range including temperature and geochemical effects.
Discrete methods such as DEM and DDA, in addition to FEM, are now being used to understand complex rock mass behavior. In fluid modeling, methods called particle methods (MPS, SPH, etc.) have been developed in recent years. These methods are used to investigate the physical and mechanical effects of water on the rock mass and provide a means to understand the behavior of the rock mass.
He published over 300 papers in journals and conferences in the field of rock mechanics, geotechnical engineering, groundwater analyses and numerical computation. He is also an editorial board member of several international journals. At the same time, he has been active in the University administration. He was an Executive Vice President of Kyoto University from 2012 to 2015.
He has served as ISRM Vice President at Large from 2011 to 2014 and played a trailblazing role in evaluating ISRM commission activities. Furthermore, he has served as President of the Japanese Committee for Rock Mechanics and Chairperson of the Rock Engineering Committee in the Japan Society for Civil Engineers.
Volume 24 - 2021 of the ISRM News Journal is online
The 2021 issue of the ISRM News Journal is available on the website. This issue of the News Journal reports the ISRM activities in 2021 and presents two technical articles.
You will find information about the Board and Council meetings and activities, the President's and Vice President's reports on the ISRM activities, the Secretary-General's report displaying the evolution of ISRM National Groups and ISRM's membership in recent years, the reports of the Technical Oversight Committee, of the Education Fund Committee and of the Young Members Committee, the Awards conferred, the Anual Review, conference reports and many other articles of interest for the rock mechanics community.
The technical articles are the ISRM Franklin Lecture 2021 delivered by Prof. Maria Rita Migliazza and the Rocha Medal presentation by Dr Yasushiro Yokota, winner of the Rocha Medal 2021.
The ISRM News Journal is distributed to all members in electronic version. We also print a few copies of the News Journal, which are available at our sponsored symposia.
Click here to read it directly on our website or download it.
ISRM launched a survey in English, Spanish and Chinese 
We would like to know more about our members and about those that have contact with us by visiting the website, subscribing to the Newsletter or following us on Twitter and LinkedIn. We would also like to know what you value most from our activities and what would you like us to offer to you.
For that purpose, the ISRM Board prepared a survey. To reach a larger number of people it can be completed in English, Spanish and Chinese. We strongly encourage you to take the 10 minutes required to complete it, because without your response we cannot provide to you the style of Society and the services that you want.
Please complete the survey by 30 April, when it will be closed.
Click here to start the survey. 点击此处开始填写问卷。 Pulse aquí para comenzar.
Prof. E.T. Brown elected as an International Member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering has elected 111 new members and 22 international members on 9 February. Prof. Ted Brown, former ISRM President (1983-1987) and ISRM Fellow was elected as an International Member "for advancing understanding of the mechanical behavior of rock masses and application to the design of engineered structures in rock". The ISRM congratulates Prof. Ted Brown for this deserved distinction, which recognises Ted's fundamental contributions to rock mechanics and rock enginerring.
Election to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. Academy membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to "engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature" and to "the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education." The new members will be formally inducted during the NAE's annual meeting on Oct. 2, 2022.
Prof. Álvaro González García passed away
It is with great sadness that the ISRM informs that Prof. Álvaro González García passed away on 9 February 2022, in Bogota. Prof. Álvaro González's professional career developed as a Geotechnical Engineer in projects related to roads, railways, hydroelectric projects, aqueducts and sewers, irrigation, mining, foundations, tunnels, sanitary fills, pavements and risks assessment. He was an excellent Engineer, Professor and remarkable Human Being who leaves us an important legacy.
Prof. González was active in the ISRM. In 2007 he was elected VP for South America and, very deservedly, he was appointed a Fellow of the Society in 2017. He was a frequent participant in the ISRM Symposia, where he will be missed, and kept many friends in our Society, which remember his kindness, his joyful attitude towards life and his great knowledge.
The thoughts of the ISRM community are with his wife, his daughters, close family and friends.
New ISRM course on Course on Crustal Stress Assessment and its Application in Engineering and Earthquake Engineering
In order to improve the methods and techniques of borehole-based stress-strain observatory, especially for calibration technology, promote experimental studies on deep-borehole stress measurement, and advance research collaboration associating the crustal stress with seismicity, seismogenesis, and rock failure process, the ISRM Commission on Crustal Stress and Earthquakes invited five commission members to present a video course. This course includes two parts on the technology of in-situ stress measurement and its application in engineering, two parts on the technology of borehole tensor strainmeter and its calibration, and one part on the application of the crustal stress in Earthquake research:
Part 0 - Furen XIE - Course Presentation- Part 1 – Hong LI - Realization of multi-component and 3-D borehole strain-meter observation technology
- Part 2 - Takatoshi ITO - Core deformation: A new stress indicator applicable in a wide range of depth and temperature
- Part 3.1 - Zhongqi Quentin YUE - Methane gas refined fault theory for cause of tectonic earthquakes
- Part 3.2 - Zhongqi Quentin YUE - Methane gas refined fault theory for cause of tectonic earthquakes
- Part 3.3 - Zhongqi Quentin YUE - Methane gas refined fault theory for cause of tectonic earthquakes
- Part 4 - Qunce CHEN - In situ stress measurements around Eastern Himalayan syntaxis
- Part 5 - Jiayong TIAN - Dynamic calibration of borehole tensor strainmeters
Eurock2022, Helsinki, Finland, 12-15 September
You are invited to reunite with your colleagues on solid bedrock at the EUROCK 2022 - Rock and Fracture Mechanics in Rock Engineering and Mining in Espoo, Helsinki-region, Finland, 12 to 15 September 2022.
The conference themes include but are not limited to the latest advances in rock mechanics, interesting mining and rock engineering cases, and engineering education. The conference includes parallel sessions, short courses, workshops, and excursions.
Should the COVID-19 situation allow, the conference will be held in the Dipoli conference center in Espoo near the Aalto University campus in the Helsinki region. The touristic city of Helsinki will be at your disposal with its underground and above-ground marvels. Virtual participation with networking possibilities will be offered in parallel.
Click here to join our mailing list! https://www.lyyti.fi/reg/eurock2022mail
Our call for papers was a huge success. We received 300 abstracts from 44 countries! All corresponding authors have now received a notification email.
Find out more on the conference website: https://www.ril.fi/en/events/eurock-2022.html
Jointly organized by Kalliomekaniikkatoimikunta (The Finnish NG of ISRM) and RIL.
See you there!
Lauri Uotinen, Chair of the Scientific Committee
Ville Raasakka, Chair of the Organizing Committee
15th International ISRM Congress, Salzburg, Austria – Call for Abstracts
The Austrian Society for Geomechanics is happy to invite you to the 15th International ISRM Congress in Salzburg, Austria in October 2023. Salzburg is the city where the ISRM was founded in 1962, and traditionally research meets industry. The preparation for the congress is in full swing.
Abstract submission is now open until 31 May 2022. In particular, we encourage young engineers and scientists to actively participate and submit papers.
Do you want us to keep you updated? Join the mailing list here.
If you have questions, ask us. We are ready → www.ISRM2023.com.
If you want to see the venue of the Congress and the city click here.
Wulf Schubert
President of the Austrian Society for Geomechanics
Chairman of the ISRM Congress 2023
AusRock 2022, Melbourne, 9 November-1 December
The Australasian Ground Control Conference (AusRock 2022), hosted in partnership with AusIMM and UNSW Sydney, is being held in conjunction with the International Society of Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering as a Regional Symposium for Australasia, from 29 November - 1 December 2022 in Melbourne, Australia and online.
A vehicle for information exchange between various industry experts and academia, AusRock2022 will focus on new technologies and developments, current and future industry needs, operational problem solving, and practical case studies.
For more information about AusRock 2022, or to sign up to receive a reminder, visit https://www.ausimm.com/conferences-and-events/ausrock/
ISRM Young Members’ Seminar Series
The ISRM Young Members’ Seminar Series is an initiative of the ISRM Young Members Group and was announced in the last Newsletter. The three first seminars took place in January, February and March 2022. They are virtual events, with the goal of providing a global platform for ISRM young members to share knowledge, experiences, and ideas. Details on this Seminar Series are available on the ISRM website.
The criteria for the speakers are:
- be an ISRM member;
maximum age of 35 years, or of 40 years if a PhD degree was obtained in the previous 5 years;- have worked in rock mechanics and rock engineering for a period no longer than ten years.
Speaker nominations can be made by the nominee's National Group, or by some other person or organization acquainted with the nominee's work. Self-nominations are also accepted. Nominations are to be addressed to the ISRM Young Members’ Seminar Series Organizing Committee at isrm.ym.seminar@gmail.com.
The Seminars are organised in Zoom. You can join using the Zoom link created for each Seminar and you can participate in the question and answers period. The Seminars will also be live-streamed to the ISRM Young Members YouTube channel, where they are available after the live event.
The programme of the next two Young Members Seminars is:
4th ISRM Young Members' Seminar, April, date and time to be announced
- Selahattin Akdag, Australia
- Topic: Experimental analyses of burst type extreme rock failures and rock fracture under high-stress conditions
- Corinne Singeisen, New Zealand
Topic: Coseismic rock slope failure mechanisms – insights from landslides triggered by the 2016 Mw 7.8 Kaikōura earthquake
5th ISRM Young Members' Seminar, May, date and time to be announced
- Juan J. Monsalve, USA
- Topic: Stochastic Discrete Element Modeling for Pillar Strength Determination: A First Step in a Risk Based Pillar Design Approach
- Masoud Rahjoo, Canada
- Topic: Directional and 3-D Confinement-Dependent Fracturing, Strength and Dilation Mobilization in Brittle Rocks
More information, as well as the date and time and the Zoom links will be announced soon on the website and on the ISRM Twitter and LinkedIn accounts.
5th Symposium of the Macedonian Association for Geotechnics, Ohrid, 23-25 June
The 5th Symposium of the Macedonian Association for Geotechnics (MAG) will be held 23-25 June 2022, as an ISRM Specialized Conference and Second conference of regional geotechnical societies. It will take place in UNESCO’s world heritage site – Ohrid, a city of great historical and cultural importance on the shore of one of the oldest and deepest European tectonic lakes.
It is organized with the goal to familiarize the expert and scientific public with the most recent findings in geotechnics. For that purpose, the Symposium will host the following lecturers and guests: Reşat Ulusay, Nick Barton, Anna Maria Ferrero, Eda Freitas de Quadros, Lyesse Laloui, Heinz Brandl, Boris Jeremić, Milorad Jovanovski, etc.
Researchers and practitioners can prepare excerpts from their findings related to the main topic: "Engineering problems in soft rocks" – about those and related geological materials, in the following areas:
Companies are encouraged to present their activities or products through stand or other sponsorship forms, where attractive opportunities are offered. Instructions for registration, papers, accommodation, marketing etc. can be found at www.mag.net.mk. In case of any technical or organizational matters, participants can obtain information from mag@gf.ukim.edu.mk and mag@mag.net.mk.
We look forward to seeing you in beautiful Ohrid!
The Organising Committee of the 5th Symposium of the MAG
RocDyn-4, Xuzhou, China, 17-19 August 2022
Dear Colleagues,
The Fourth International Conference on Rock Dynamics and Applications (RocDyn-4) will be held on 17-19 August 2022 in Xuzhou, China. The main theme is “Rock Dynamics: Progress and Prospect”, with the aim to take stock of the significant progress that rock dynamics has made since the formation of the ISRM Commission on Rock Dynamics in 2008 and RocDyn-1 in 2013, examine new areas of research and applications, and look to the future of rock dynamics.
Now, the registration channel has been opened. You can click here to register for the conference.
We have invited eight distinguished speakers to lead the keynote lectures and highlight some of the latest development in rock dynamic research, innovations, challenges, and future directions. Click here to visit te conference website.
Sincerely yours,
Organizing Committee
RocDyn-4, Xuzhou 2022
9th Brazilian Rock Mechanics Symposium, 23-26 August 2022, Campinas, Brazil
After postponements imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 9th edition of the Brazilian Rock Mechanics Symposium (SBMR) will take place in person between August 23 and 26, 2022, at EXPO DOM PEDRO, located in the city of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil.
SBMR represents the most important Brazilian meeting for the presentation and discussion of scientific and technological research, projects and works in Rock Mechanics and occurs in parallel to the 20th Brazilian Congress of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (COBRAMSEG 2022), 4th Brazilian Symposium of Young Geotechnical Engineers, 6th South American Conference of Young Geotechnical Engineers and the 11th Luso-Brazilian Congress of Geotechnics.
The events will feature short courses on different geotechnical topics, including two in the rock mechanics subject. The former president of CBMR, Prof. Lineu Ayres da Silva will teach the course “Rock Blasting by Explosives in Urban and Underwater Areas”. The course “Fundamental Aspects to the Study of Rock Mechanics”, taught by Prof. Carlos Emmanuel Lautenschläger (CBMR vice-president), will be aimed at students and young professionals.
Furthermore, as a tradition of CBMR in its most important national event, RockBowl will take place during SBMR 2022. The 4th national edition of the Rockbowl will be sponsored by Geobrugg.
The organizing committee is working to hold an excellent event in 2022 and invites everyone to follow the page www.cobramseg2022.com.br and the social networks of the Brazilian Rock Mechanics Committee (available at www.cbmr.com.br) for updates on the symposium.
The SBMR 2022 Organising Committee
CouFrac 2022, 14-16 November, Berkeley, California, USA 
Dear Colleagues,
We welcome you to participate in the CouFrac 2022 (Coupled Processes in Fractured Geological Media) Conference, which will take place in Berkeley, California, Nov 14-16 2022. See attached flyer for details.
We have organized a very interesting program with distinguished Keynote Speakers, Panel Discussion on Carbon Neutrality, and Emerging Scientist Plenaries.
The Organizing Committee has defined a diverse set of sessions under the theme of coupled processes in fractured geological media.
We are asking for abstracts by May 18, 2022; no need to write a whole conference paper. However, selected presentations will be invited to submit papers to one of several Journal Special Issues that we have secured (e.g. RMRE, WRR, JRMGE, and TUST).
The conference will be held in person in Berkeley with the possibility of participation through video conferencing. Click here to visit the conference website.
We look forward to your participation!
Best Regards,
Jonny Rutqvist, LBNL, Chair
Mengsu Hu, LBNL, Carl Steefel, LBNL, Ki-Bok Min, SNU, Antonio Rinaldi, ETH, Pengzhi Pan, CAS, Hideaki Yasuhara, Ehime University, Co-Chairs
Renew your access to the ISRM Digital Library
The ISRM Digital Library is part of OnePetro, a large online library managed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers. ISRM individual members registered on the ISRM website are allowed to download, at no cost, up to 100 papers per year from the ISRM conferences. ISRM corporate members can download 250 papers. At the start of every year ISRM members must renew their credentials at OnePetro. Detailed instructions are available on this page.
The ISRM Digital Library was launched in 2010 and its main objective is to make available to the Rock Mechanics community worldwide the materials published in the ISRM Congresses and sponsored Symposia and in this way giving them greater visibility.
ISRM Rocha Medal 2024 - nominations to be received by 31 December 2022
Nominations for the Rocha Medal 2022 are to be received by the ISRM Secretariat by 31 December 2022. The winner will be announced during the 2023 ISRM Congress on Rock Mechanics in Salzburg, Austria, and will be invited to receive the award and deliver a lecture at the ISRM International Symposium in 2024.
The Rocha Medal has been awarded annually by the ISRM, since 1982, for an outstanding doctoral thesis in rock mechanics or rock engineering, to honour the memory of Past President Manuel Rocha while stimulating young researchers. Besides the Rocha medal awarded to the winner, one or two runner-up certificates may also be awarded.
Click here to download the announcement with details on the Rocha Medal 2024.
ISRM Sponsored Conferences
