The most advanced 3D Geotechnical design and analysis software.

CESAR-LCPC is an all-purpose software package based on the finite element method and adapted to resolving civil engineering and environmental problems: structural computation, soil and rock mechanics, heat-related problems, hydrogeology, etc…

General features

Analysis

Elastoplastic Analysis

CESAR implements several calculation algorithms so that non-linear analysis can be carried out in an efficient and robust manner.

CESAR comes with both simple and advanced constitutive models for soil and rock including Mohr-Coulomb, Hoek-Brown and Hardening Soil Model. User will also take high benefice from the constitutive laws lab, allowing an advanced soil behaviour modelling.

Other materials like concrete or steel are also embedded.

Groundwater flow

CESAR processes seepage analysis in saturated or non-saturated porous media. The diffusion problems are analyzed under steady- or transient state.
The results can be integrated in the total/effective stress problems. This sequential analysis is fitted for common models.

Safety factor and Strength Reduction methods

The results of a Finite Elements analysis (stresses, displacements fields) reflect the mechanical equilibrium of the model. However limit state or safety-factor analysis is often required for the design of geostructures. CESAR integrates:

  • the strength reduction method, also named “c-phi reduction”. It provides a safety factor against collapse,
  • a limit analysis procedure by piloting the loading sets. It provides a safety factor against bearing capacity.

Consolidation

The consolidation analysis is used to simulate the phenomenon of how excess pore water pressure changes with the changes in load/boundary conditions.

In CESAR, this full coupled stress-flow analysis integrates the behaviour of non-linear materials constitutive models. This process provides more accurate results than the same analysis with elastic materials or uncoupled assumptions.

Dynamics

CESAR computes, by means of direct integration, the response of a structure submitted to a dynamic load; it enables proceeding with a step-by-step resolution of the dynamic equilibrium equation.

Another methods consists of computing, by means of modal superposition (eigenvalues seeking is included), the response of a structure submitted to a dynamic load. Two types of problems have been considered herein:

  • estimation of the maximum response by means of spectral computation (an SRSS- or CQC-type superposition),
  • computation of the full response.

Soil-structure interaction

he process in which the response of the soil influences the motion of the structure and the motion of the structure influences the response of the soil is termed as soil-structure interaction (SSI).

CESAR integrates Finite Elements families for a correct modelling of this SSI:

  • Beam, truss, shell, plates, spring elements, damping elements… for the structure modelling.
  • Volume elements, spring elements, damping elements… for the soil modelling.

More, contact elements and algorithms can be associated to the shell, beam and volumes interfaces so that debonding, slipping or simple friction is correctly modeled.

Heat

Heat analysis is useful for the simulation of several phenomena in Civil Engineering: fire in tunnels, temperature elevation in a road pavement… CESAR is fitted to model several boundary conditions and heat transfers.

Easily coupled with the mechanical algorithms, the temperature gradients, results of the heat analysis, provide correct modelling of the induced stress fields.

Constitutive models

A rich integrated database

Elasticity

  • Homogeneous isotropic linear elasticity
  • Homogeneous orthotropic linear elasticity
  • Isotropic linear elasticity with E and φ varying linearly with depth
  • Isotropic linear elasticity with E = f(zφ)
  • Non-linear elasticity of the Hardening Soil Model
  • Non-linear elasticity of Cam-Clay
  • Non-linear elasticity of Duncan
  • Non-linear elasticity of Fahey-Carter

Plasticity criteria for soils

  • Mohr-Coulomb
  • Mohr Coulomb criterion with c et φ varying linearly with depth (c = f(z) ; φ= f(z))
  • Hardening Soil Model
  • Cam-Clay (modified)
  • Drucker-Prager
  • Prévost–Hoëg
  • Hoek-Brown (1997)
  • Tresca
  • Oriented criterion
  • HiSS (Shao & Desai)
  • S-Clay 1
  • Vermeer
  • Nova
  • Mélanie

Plasticity criteria for other materials

  • Von Mises
  • Parabolic criterion
  • Hill-Lourenço
  • Willam Warnke

User-defined material laws

A numerical toolbox of constitutive models has been designed and integrated in the software CESAR-LCPC, proposing elastic laws, plasticity and hardening criteria. Thus adapted to the project context and geomaterials types, they show value added to geotechnical engineers for a better analysis of earthworks behaviour.


CAD tools & Workflow


CESAR is equipped with a large set of CAD tools so that user feels comfortable as it is similar to his CAD software environment:

  • Circles, lines, splines, NURBS, blocks.
  • Imports: DXF, LANDXML, STEP.
  • Intersections: volume/volume, volume/surface, surface/surface, edge/edge.
  • Operations: translation, rotation, symmetry, extrusion.

Also, because several structures are suited for parametric design, we integrate assistance for the model generation, from geometry (tunnels as example) to results analysis. Our tools are based on XML files and PYTHON scripts.

The workflow of CESAR has been designed so that user will easily have an overview of the model status: geometry, mesh, material properties, boundary conditions and loading sets.

The workflow of CESAR has been designed so that user will easily have an overview of the model status: geometry, mesh, material properties, boundary conditions and loading sets.

Meshing tools

CESAR includes a wide set of efficient meshing procedures.

All the algorithms allow definition of mesh refinement by giving density of all the segments:

  • Mesh of surface regions of plan, revolution or coons type;
  • Regular volume elements mesh of hexahedron, pentahedron or tetrahedron type;
  • Automatic volume mesh generation (Volumes are defined by their external surface and are filled of tetrahedrons);
  • It is possible to extend the mesh by translation, rotations or symmetry.


Finite Elements library

  • Isoparametric displacement-type elements
  • Tetrahedron. hexahedron, pentahedron…
  • Beam elements
  • Shell elements
  • Contact elements
  • Truss elements
  • Spring elements
  • Nodal special elements (heat transfer, damping…)
  • Isoparametric diffusion-type elements
  • Exchange elements
  • Two-dimensional isoparametric elements with three degrees of freedom per node (two displacements, hydraulic load) for consolidation problems
  • Isoparametric elements with five degrees of freedom per node (three displace¬ments, pore pressure, temperature) for thermomechanical problems in porous media.

CESAR 2D

CESAR 2D is an intuitive and complete Finite Element software for modelling and analysis of civil engineering projects.

Reliable, powerful and user-friendly, it covers a large scope of applications in soil and rock mechanics (strains, stabilities…). The user will be able to consider various types of situations with groundwater (consolidation, drained or undrained).

Moreover, CESAR 2D integrates a wide range of calculation capacities for extending the analysis to temperature transfer or damage assessment in civil materials like concrete or masonry.

CESAR 3D

CESAR 3D is an intuitive and complete Finite Element software for modelling and analysis of civil engineering projects.

Reliable, powerful and user-friendly, it covers a large scope of applications in soil and rock mechanics (strains, stabilities…). The user will be able to consider various types of situations with groundwater (consolidation, drained or undrained).

Moreover, CESAR 3D integrates a wide range of calculation capacities for extending the analysis to temperature transfer or damage assessment in civil materials like concrete or masonry.

Why choose CESAR?

  1. Full-featuredCESAR combines mechanics, hydrogeology, heat transfer, and dynamics, required for modelling geotechnical projects.
  2. Easy to handle2D and 3D graphical user interfaces of CESAR are designed for a fast understanding of the design process, from geometry construction to results analysis.
  3. Technical supportitech and Université Gustave Eiffel experienced teams provides you with the appropriate level of response and training for your technical questions.
  4. Open toolFar from being a black box, CESAR is open to data editing, Python scripting and interfacing with third-party tools.

CESAR is a finite element software for structural analysis designed and verified by the Université Gustave Eiffel institute (formerly known as IFSTTAR, or LCPC – Central Bridges and Roadworks Laboratory). Under continuous development since 1983 in order to meet civil engineering standards, CESAR is dedicated to underground works, civil works, soils mechanics, hydrogeology and environmental challenges.

In 2003, itech joined the software’s development team and has since brought its expertise in designing powerful and accessible user interfaces. Thus, the close collaboration between IFSTTAR and itech brings CESAR as a highly featured and professional software both in 2D and 3D.

  • Plane-stress or axisymmetric 2D analysis
  • 3D meshes by extrusion or filling algorithm
  • Staged construction modelling
  • Rich library of constitutive laws (Mohr-Coulomb, Hardening Soil, Cam-Clay, Hoek-Brown and more)
  • Soil-structure interactions
  • Safety coefficient calculation (phi-c reduction, limit pressure)
  • Influence of water table level variations on the structure
  • Thermal and hydrogeologic studies within a single piece of software
  • Wide range of load cases and boundary conditions
  • No limitation in number of load sets and constructions stages
  • Easy transition from 2D to 3D through a common user interface
  • Numerous tools for relevant and detailed post-processing
  • Soil reinforcement through homogenization methods
  • Lateral friction on anchor bars
  • Toolbox for user-defined constitutive models
  • Loads due to creep effects
  • Tensar model for geogrids
  • LandXML import
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Perpetual Licenses
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  • Maintenance - Unlimited Support
  • Suitable for in-house design teams
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Subscriptions Licenses
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  • Customised training
  • Unlimited Support
  • Suitable for in-house design teams
  • No bulk discounts
  • Less expensive upfront
  • Perfect for MSME's
  • Available for all software we sell

Who Can Benefit

  • Geotechnical Engineers
  • Research Scholars
  • Academicians

Applications

CESAR is a calculation software enabling modelling and analysis of geotechnical problems. Proven, powerful and user-friendly, it covers a wide scope of soil and rock mechanics applications (deformation, stability…). It is a valuable tool for geotechnical engineers for embankment, excavation, foundation or tunnel studies, and more.

Deformation and stability

CESAR is bundled with an extensive constitutive model library (linear and non-linear elasticity, Mohr-Coulomb, Hardening Soil, Cam-Clay…) relevant to the study of deformations and stresses in soil masses

Consolidation analysis (coupling) allows the study of primary and secondary settlement of soil masses.

Finally, CESAR features the required calculation procedures in order to obtain safety coefficients in regards to stability (c-phi reduction procedure) or stresses (e.g. limit pressure search).

Soil-Structure Interactions

CESAR offers intuitive and comprehensive tools for simulating consecutive passes of embanking or excavation, integrating realistic construction stages. Numerous pre-defined elements are available to model structures and their interaction with the soil mass, or the reinforcement of soil masses (anchors, geogrids, bolts…).

These tools enable geotechnical engineers to predict ground movements induced by and endured throughout construction.

Groundwater

CESAR is bundled with the required tools for modelling the water table as a mechanical load. The user can also perform independent hydrogeological calculations: transient and steady state flows, in saturated or unsaturated soils (van Genuchten and Gardner models or user-defined saturation curves).

Thus, the user is able to model complex hydrogeologic problems with varying water levels and flow conditions such as dewatering or groundwater control.

CESAR is a calculation software enabling modelling and analysis of geotechnical problems. Proven, powerful and user-friendly, it covers a wide scope of soil and rock mechanics applications (deformation, stability…). It is a valuable tool for geotechnical engineers for embankment, excavation, foundation or tunnel studies, and more.

Conventional method

The user will easily produce tunnel design projects by the Conventional Method (or New Austrian Tunneling Method, NATM, or Sequential Excavation Method, SEM). The complete set of CAD tools in CESAR 2D and CESAR 3D allows unlimited types of sketches of the tunnel. The detailed sequence of ground excavation and the activation of the structural components of the final project (shotcrete, final lining and station infrastructure) can be modelled using specific and intuitive tools (excavation forces, long-term effects on the concrete…).

Tunnel boring machine

CESAR (2D and 3D) is bundled with the required tools for modelling the complex sequence of the tunnel boring machine excavation

  • Pressure at the front,
  • Controlled excavation forces for TBM shield conicity,
  • Variable pressure for the radial grouting,
  • Modelling of the lining segments with shell or volume elements.

All these tools help the tunnel engineer for the calculation of the settlement trough and the control of the volume loss.

Cut-and-cover method

This method is declined in Conventional Bottom-Up Construction or in Top-Down Construction. CESAR 2D and CESAR 3D provides the tools and analysis components for the accurate modelling of the construction stages: retaining walls, struts, the various slabs and final backfill. With structural elements (beams and bars, shells) and adapted interface elements (joints), the tunnel engineer will analyse properly the soil-structure interaction.

Ground supports

In poor ground conditions or in urban projects, the design of the tunnel requires the soils reinforcement in order to reduce the settlements. CESAR is equipped with a full set of elements (1D beams and bars) for the modelling of radial or front bolts, or pipe umbrellas. User can also use specific elements with friction law for a sharp modelling of the soil-reinforcement behaviour.

CESAR is equipped with standard features for structural analysis: beams and shell elements, springs and other links, various types of loads, static and dynamic analysis algorithms….

CESAR proposes several constitutive models dedicated to the modelling of concrete (parabolic criterion, Willam-Warnke…) or masonry (homogenization of Zucchini…). In particular, damage models are integrated for the evaluation of durability of structures: Mazars, Faria, Oliver…

CESAR proposes several constitutive models dedicated to the modelling of concrete (parabolic criterion, Willam-Warnke…) or masonry (homogenization of Zucchini…). In particular, damage models are integrated for the evaluation of durability of structures: Mazars, Faria, Oliver…

As such, CESAR can contribute to the understanding of the overall behaviour of a project and to the expertise of failure mechanisms.

Concrete at early age

Masonry

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Customer's Feedback

It was really a fun experience using S-FOUNDATION. It is an easy-to-use software especially with an attractive interface (GUI). I have been teaching soil mechanics, geotechnical engineering & foundation engineering courses for the past 17 years in Malaysia with experience in PLAXIS.

Youventharan Duraisamy
University Malaysia Pahang

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Frequently Ask Questions

Key Advantages

      1. Full-featured

    CESAR combines mechanics, hydrogeology, heat transfer, and dynamics, required for modelling geotechnical projects.

      1. Easy to handle

    2D and 3D graphical user interfaces of CESAR are designed for a fast understanding of the design process, from geometry construction to results analysis.

      1. Technical support

    itech and Université Gustave Eiffel experienced teams provides you with the appropriate level of response and training for your technical questions.

    1. Open tool

Far from being a black box, CESAR is open to data editing, Python scripting and interfacing with third-party tools.

An expertise acknowledged by professionals

CESAR is a finite element software for structural analysis designed and verified by the Université Gustave Eiffel institute (formerly known as IFSTTAR, or LCPC – Central Bridges and Roadworks Laboratory). Under continuous development since 1983 in order to meet civil engineering standards, CESAR is dedicated to underground works, civil works, soils mechanics, hydrogeology and environmental challenges.
In 2003, itech joined the software’s development team and has since brought its expertise in designing powerful and accessible user interfaces. Thus, the close collaboration between IFSTTAR and itech brings CESAR as a highly featured and professional software both in 2D and 3D.

A Comprehensive Tool

  • Plane-stress or axisymmetric 2D analysis
  • 3D meshes by extrusion or filling algorithm
  • Staged construction modelling
  • Rich library of constitutive laws (Mohr-Coulomb, Hardening Soil, Cam-Clay, Hoek-Brown and more)
  • Soil-structure interactions
  • Safety coefficient calculation (phi-c reduction, limit pressure)
  • Influence of water table level variations on the structure
  • Thermal and hydrogeologic studies within a single piece of software
  • Wide range of load cases and boundary conditions
  • No limitation in number of load sets and constructions stages
  • Easy transition from 2D to 3D through a common user interface
  • Numerous tools for relevant and detailed post-processing

Innovations

  • Soil reinforcement through homogenization methods
  • Lateral friction on anchor bars
  • Toolbox for user-defined constitutive models
  • Loads due to creep effects
  • Tensar model for geogrids
  • LandXML import
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