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Sawada Lab
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A lab that studies the behavior of ground containing water and air, and also works to protect historic sites.
AboutAbout the lab
Understanding soil behavior through water and air
The Sawada Lab studies the properties of unsaturated soil, which consists of soil particles, water, and air.
In ground above the groundwater table, the proportions of these three components greatly change how water flows through the soil and how strong it is.
Using laboratory tests and pore-scale fluid analysis, the lab investigates how the proportions of water and air change soil properties.
Based on this mechanics, the lab also works on protecting the foundations of ancient burial mounds (kofun) and historic buildings damaged by natural disasters or aging.
Key terms
- Unsaturated soil
- Soil in which the voids between particles contain both water and air. Much of the ground above the groundwater table is of this kind
- Pores (voids)
- The spaces between soil particles. Water and air moving through them change the properties of the soil
- In-situ test
- A test that measures the strength or permeability of ground at the site itself, without bringing the soil back to a laboratory
NewsLab news
View More ↗ResearchResearch themes
The lab studies and seeks to improve the complex behavior of ground, or soil, which supports much of our infrastructure. Focusing especially on the hydraulic and mechanical properties of unsaturated soil, a mixture of soil particles, water, and air, it combines experiments and numerical analysis.
*Illustrative imageFundamental Research on Unsaturated Soil
Ground above the groundwater table consists of soil particles, water, and air, and its hydraulic and mechanical properties change greatly with their proportions. Aiming to better predict and control the behavior of unsaturated soil in fields such as rainfall-induced slope disasters, the lab investigates it from micro and macro perspectives through experiments and numerical analysis.
*Illustrative imageConservation of Historic Sites
Based on the mechanics of unsaturated soil, the lab works on conserving the foundations of kofun (ancient burial mounds) and historic buildings affected by natural disasters or aging. Through in-situ tests, laboratory tests, and numerical analysis, it studies how the damage occurs and aims to propose rational conservation methods from a mechanics perspective.
MembersFaculty
The Sawada Lab consists of faculty members, technical staff, secretaries, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- Associate ProfessorMai SawadaPublications ↗
VoicesStudent voices
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Soil Profile Showing 1912 ash layer and ash C, Archeological Compliance Excavation Near Brooks Camp Visitor Center ( )” Katmai National Park and Preserve / Public domain (cropped)
- Fundamental Research on Unsaturated Soil: “Debris Flow at Yubunesawa” 金城 / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Conservation of Historic Sites: “Akeai Kofun, funkyu-1” Saigen Jiro / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (高橋研究室): “Full breach at levee L-575 near Hamburg” US Army Corps of Engineers from USA / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (小口研究室): “Ffionphort cracked granite boulder” 作者不詳 / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (津野研究室): “Ashio Seismological Observatory” Qurren / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (小谷研究室): “Tsunami evacuation route sign on the road, Kamakura, 2016” DimiTalen / CC0 (cropped)
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