Silent boundary conditions for the wave propagation problems in saturated porous media

Wave propagation both in one- and in two-dimensional saturated elastic porous media is analysed by means of a two-field finite element model with silent boundaries. An extension of the elastic ‘multidirectional’ transmitting boundary to two-phase media is developed to simulate the silent boundary condition. The theoretical assessment and the numerical formulation of the first-order silent boundary technique is presented in detail. Some examples are used to demonstrate the reliability of the first-order method, especially for problems with plane and axisymmetric waves having various angles of incidence. Finally, the wave propagation along a pile shaft is presented, to simulate a common non-destructive dynamic pile test.