Interacting indentors on a poroelastic half-space

This paper examines the interaction between two rigid circular indentors on a poroelastic half-space. The resulting mixed boundary value problem, when formulated in the Laplace transform domain, yields an infinite set of Fredholm integral equations. These integral equations are then solved for some special cases. Numerical results for the case of a single indentor show a good agreement with those obtained by using Heinrich and Desoyer's assumption. For the case in which the radius of one indentor reduces to zero (interaction between a rigid indentor and an externally placed load), the resulting equations are solved by a semi-inverse method to give analytical solutions for the resultant force and moment required to maintain the indentor with no normal displacement. When the indentor is subjected to an axial load but allowed to undergo an additional settlement and tilt, numerical results are presented to demonstrate the manner in which Poisson's ratio and the drainage boundary conditions influence the consolidation of the half-space. Numerical results are also given to illustrate the interaction between two identical indentors when ratio of the radius to the spatial distance between them is small.