Shear and compression waves screening in 2D for dry or saturated ground using periodic infinite and finite soil-foam barriers

This paper investigates the performance of soft barriers installed in the ground for screening shear and compression waves in saturated and dry grounds. The proposed barriers include the soil as a core surrounded by a soft material like foam. The barriers are arranged in periodic structures, and it is aimed to find their bandgaps using solid-state physics theories. Firstly, an ideal infinite lattice is considered, and its bandgaps and attenuation zones are found using Bloch-Floquet theory. Thereafter, a finite lattice of barriers is also investigated for practical purposes, and the minimum required number of barrier rows to obtaining similar bandgaps is obtained. The infinite and finite lattices are simulated using finite element COMSOL Multiphysics software with its inbuilt features. Also, the analyses are performed in dry and saturated grounds using elastodynamic and Biot's poroelastodynamic theories, respectively. Extensive parametric studies are also conducted on the material and geometric properties of the barriers, and the corresponding bandgap properties are discussed. The finite element simulations are performed in both frequency and time domains. The obtained results indicate the effectiveness of using soft barriers around the soil in a unit cell for screening the waves in dry and saturated grounds.